Daryl Dixon and Carol Peletier’s journey on The Walking Dead may be winding to a close as the hit AMC series embarks on its 11th and final season, but their story won’t be wrapping up anytime soon. Although TWD is poised to end in 2022 after more than a decade on the air, a confirmed Carol and Daryl spinoff series will expand the TWD universe, though fans shouldn’t expect it to look identical to the mothership series, according to Norman Reedus.
Reedus, who has starred alongside Carol actor Melissa McBride since The Walking Dead first debuted back in 2010, making them the two remaining characters still left from Season 1, teased the upcoming series in a recent interview with The Wrap. Although details about the show have been kept under wraps, Reedus did tease that the untitled spinoff will have “a very different look” and a “very different feel.” Overall, Reedus said he thinks the series will be “a very different show.” The actor, who called the end of the flagship series “bittersweet,” did not provide any further details, though his remarks were similar to those of TWD showrunner Angela Kang, who will also act as showrunner on the spinoff.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly ahead of the TWD Season 10 finale in October 2020, Kang said the spinoff is “going to feel hopefully a little tonally fresh” as the two lead characters are “going to be off on a different journey.” Kang, who also remained tightlipped, described the series as a “road show,” explaining that the two leading characters are “just in a different stage of their lives and it’s more of a road show, which I think will be really fun.” Kang said that Reedus and McBride “have been excited about the prospect of doing something different and new, so that’s in the future.”
The planned spinoff was first confirmed to be in the works back in September 2020, when it was first announced that The Walking Dead would be ending after the 24-episode 11th season, which debuted Sunday night. Based on Robert Kirkman’s comic book series of the same name, The Walking Dead has been an AMC staple since 2010 and has consistently proven to be a ratings powerhouse. Along with the Daryl and Carol spinoff, a second new spinoff, Tales of The Walking Dead, was also confirmed. That series is described as “an episodic anthology with individual episodes or arcs of episodes focused on new or existing characters, backstories or other stand-alone experiences.” The spinoffs will mark the latest in the growing TWD universe and will follow on the heels of Fear The Walking Dead and The Walking Dead: World Beyond.
New episodes of The Walking Dead air Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on AMC, with episodes airing one week early on AMC+. The final season will air in three 8-episode parts, with 11B and 11C currently slated to air sometime in 2022.