The dead come back to life and slowly stalk the living in AMC’s “The Walking Dead.” But after a decade, it appears the dead will win…but only temporarily. That’s right, according to Deadline, AMC has made the decision to end “The Walking Dead” after next year’s expanded Season 11. But don’t worry ‘Dead’ fans, that doesn’t mean there is going to be less ‘TWD’ to keep you occupied. In fact, much like the series, the final season of “The Walking Dead” is going to be a seemingly never-ending endeavor stretched to its maximum over multiple years.
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As it stands, “The Walking Dead” is in the midst of its 10th season. You see, how the series operates is that the show splits each season into halves and releases one in the spring and the other in the fall. So, right now, ‘TWD’ is still halfway through its 10th season, which still has a midpoint finale to air on October 4 (delayed by the pandemic), with 10 more episodes coming in 2021. That means Season 11 will begin (likely) in 2021 and will be expanded to 24 episodes that will be shown over the course of two years. Got it? Long story short, just because the show is “ending,” it won’t actually be off the year for years to come.
And the craziest part of the whole announcement is the fact that “The Walking Dead” mothership series is ending, but AMC has already greenlit a brand-new spinoff show that will follow the further adventures of Daryl Dixon and Carol Peletier, played by Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride, respectively. That show is expected to debut in 2023 and will join the already-airing spinoffs, “Fear the Walking Dead” and the upcoming ‘World Beyond.’ Then you have the “Tales of the Walking Dead” anthology series that is still in development. Oh yeah, and let’s not forget that AMC is still planning to start filming on the first of three features starring Andrew Lincoln that will continue his character’s journey that begin in the main series.
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To recap, “The Walking Dead” is going to end…in a few years. And in its place, AMC will still air three spinoff series (including one new one that was just announced) and is still planning a film franchise. If you’re pounding your head against the desk, wondering when AMC will just end the series that peaked years ago, you’re not alone.
However, even though the main series seems to have shed a ton of viewers over the past few years, it still ranks as one of the biggest shows on cable and a clear moneymaker for AMC. And as the network has already shown over the past decade, the folks involved with ‘TWD’ are not shy about milking this zombie-loving franchise for all its worth. So, why stop now?