As AMC’s flagship show The Walking Dead nears its final episodes airing this fall, the network has announced a number of spin-off series set in the universe. One such series was to focus on the fan-favorite characters played by Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride, Daryl and Carol. However, last week the show got a major shake-up when an announcement came that McBride had stepped away from the project. Now, Reedus has broken his silence on the matter.
Last night, Reedus was a guest on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and the topic of the spin-off came up. He explained that “twelve years is a grueling schedule,” referring to how long McBride has been on the show. “She wanted to take some time off and she’s doing that," Reedus said. "She deserves it.” It seems from the interview that there is no animosity between the two actors. His comments also make sense, considering McBride has been a main character on the show since it premiered back in 2010. Reedus does give some hope to the fans who wanted more of the duo, adding: “I imagine those characters are going to meet back up at some point, and they might even meet up with some other characters down the road. In the meantime, [AMC] was like, ‘Hey, you wanna go on a mission?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, let’s go on a mission.'”
The show was announced back in September 2020, with not much more news being released until McBride’s exit. In fact, still not much is known about the show beyond Reedus’ involvement. However, it was revealed that filming would be taking place in Europe, as AMC’s official statement on McBride’s exit read: “…in the previously announced spinoff focused on the Daryl Dixon and Carol Peletier characters, which will be set and filmed in Europe this summer and premiere next year. Relocating to Europe became logistically untenable for Melissa at this time.”
The still-untitled series will have David Zabel serve as the showrunner, after formerly having the position on ER and current The Walking Dead showrunner Angela Kang also left the spin-off. Currently, Reedus is the only cast member officially attached and no writers have been announced, although it is said that the scripts are currently being written.
This spinoff is just one of many as the brand has been a proven winner for AMC. The first spinoff began in 2015 with Fear the Walking Dead, which is currently in its seventh season with an eighth already announced. The second spinoff, The Walking Dead: World Beyond, wrapped up its planned two-season story last year. AMC is also planning the premiere of Tales of the Walking Dead, an anthology series, for later this year, with Isle of the Dead, a Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and Maggie (Lauren Cohan) spinoff, set to join the Daryl spinoff in premiering next year.
The Walking Dead is currently on a hiatus, with the last set of episodes in its eleventh and final season set to premiere on AMC this fall. This untitled spin-off is expected to premiere in 2023.