AMC's The Walking Dead franchise is no stranger to making fans feel all of the feels. The original series was a master of this, giving audiences hope in one moment and snatching it away repeatedly all throughout its 11 seasons. The subsequent spinoffs have proceeded to do the same on a smaller - and arguably more personal - scale. That's the TWD Universe for you.
The franchise has reached something of a crossroads in recent years, as those new spinoffs - Dead City, Daryl Dixon, and The Ones Who Live - have been winding down. One ended two years ago, the other is ending next year, and the third one's fate is unclear after just completing its third season. And, with that, fans are looking ahead to the one confirmed season that the saga is still producing.
Unfortunately, it sounds like that upcoming final season might not just mark the end of that specific series.
Daryl Dixon season 4 is "the end" of Daryl and Carol
The stars and creatives behind The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon recently appeared at New York Comic-Con to spotlight the upcoming fourth and final season of the TWD show. Although we have known that the Walking Dead spinoff would be ending for over a year now, there has always been hope that we will see central characters like Daryl Dixon and Carol Peletier once again in the near-future. After all, the TWD Universe will continue on at AMC for a long time to come, so it would make sense for future stories to incorporate them. And yet, that's not exactly the vibe that was present at NYCC.
The first trailer was showcased to audiences in attendance at the event (before being subsequently released online) and to call it an emotional one would be an understatement. Not only does it feature a sneak peek of the powerful final adventure that awaits Daryl and Carol, it reflects on their decades-long friendship, featuring footage of the original Walking Dead series - almost as if it's preparing to say goodbye to them.
Watch the trailer below:
It's certainly an emotional watch, because it reminds you of how long these two characters have been a part of each other's lives (and our lives too). However, it does feel pretty final, like the season is being designed as a final farewell to them. Whether that means the final chapter for both characters or just one of them, thus potentially closing a chapter for their long-term friendship, we don't know, but the clip is extremely moving and it even made star Melissa McBride cry at NYCC.
Speaking of McBride's NYCC appearance, she also suggested that this would be something of a final chapter for the pair, telling audiences: "We get to the end of Daryl and Carol."
Needless to say, that's a heartbreaking thought. Again, Daryl and Carol's journeys have both been intertwined ever since they first appeared on the original TWD series back in 2010. Both McBride and star Norman Reedus made their debuts in the exact same episode - the third episode of season 1 - and they became unlikely friends shortly after that. Carol evolved so much throughout the series, becoming one of the most badass characters to ever grace any screen, considering Daryl her closest friend in the process. The idea that they wouldn't be sharing the screen again is extremely sad.
The most eyebrow-raising part about all of this is that Reedus is currently in talks to return to the TWD Universe for another project, which has fans already convinced that the Daryl Dixon finale will be used to write Carol out of the franchise, serving as a send-off for both her and their friendship. Both McBride and Reedus have confirmed that the fourth season will be an emotional one for fans, which could indeed quietly confirm that theory.
While some are concerned that this means Carol could die, the more likely school of thought here is that she will stay behind in Spain while Daryl ventures back to the US alone. The trailer makes it very clear that the theme of the final season will be all about figuring out what home is, and Carol found happiness in season 3 with Antonio. As the objective of the third season was for her and Daryl to return home to the US, it seems somewhat unlikely that the fourth season would see them have the exact same objective.
Could Carol stay behind in Spain? (And does this set up Rick's return?)
For years, Daryl was her home as her longtime best friend; that's the very reason that she ended up tracking him down in France. She simply couldn't bear to be without her best friend. And it would certainly be an interesting choice for the series that brought them back together to end with them apart again. But if Carol finds happiness again in Spain, then maybe that's worth it.
As for Daryl, there have been longtime hopes that when he returns home to the US, he will reunite with Rick Grimes. Another of Daryl's closest friends, Rick has been long-presumed dead when the bridge exploded in The Walking Dead season 9 episode 5. But, as viewers knew, he was alive and well - with his and Michonne's spinoff The Ones Who Live taking the pair back to Alexandria. At that point in time, however, Daryl and Carol were in France.
Andrew Lincoln has hinted that he could return to the TWD Universe in the near-future, so fans are holding out hope for a Rick and Daryl reunion in Daryl Dixon's series finale. The question is whether it would set up that long-awaited, long-rumored crossover that would essentially serve as a twelfth season of The Walking Dead, bringing together characters from across all three spinoffs (and the original series). Is that the project that Reedus and Lincoln have hinted at?
Furthermore, with Melissa McBride confirming that she will be taking a break after Daryl Dixon's conclusion, and Carol's potential plans to stay in Spain, would that rule her out of a reunion with Rick (and, effectively, the crossover season, too)? Could it truly mean the end for Carol Peletier?
We certainly hope not, but it is clear that there is an even greater sense of finality about The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon's final season than any of the TWD fans expected there to be. We may get the tissues ready now, because that season of the show will undoubtedly be an emotional one.
The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon season 4 arrives on AMC and AMC+ in February 2027.
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