The Walking Dead franchise takes place in a ruthless post-apocalyptic world where absolutely anyone could bite the dust (or be bitten) at any given moment, regardless of how important their arc may seem to the series' overarching story. As a result, we've seen no shortage of fan favorites meet their end in the most violent and heartbreaking ways possible. But what if those who have been "left behind" could suddenly return to the small screen?
The third and final season of The Walking Dead: Dead City is just around the corner, and it will see Negan and Maggie come together to try to lead their own group of survivors in a zombie-infested Manhattan that is also home to ruthless threats such as The Dama. But before the curtain closes, audiences will see what the world could have been like had a zombie apocalypse not occurred.
The Walking Dead: Dead City season 3 will feature characters who haven't been seen 'in a long time'
During an interview with RadioTimes, The Walking Dead: Dead City showrunner Seth Hoffman revealed that the "alternate reality episode" that's set to be a part of the third season will open the doors for the return of iconic characters who haven't been seen in years:
"I hope I can look at it from a fan's perspective, and I thought, 'One thing that fans would want to see in this spin-off is characters that maybe we haven't seen for a long time.' If you were to do an alternate reality episode where the apocalypse never happened, you could invite back some characters that haven't been part of the franchise in a long time."
A popular fan theory is that The Walking Dead: Dead City season 3 will feature the return of Beth Greene, Maggie's half-sister, who died in the fifth season of the mainline show. After all, if the zombie apocalypse had never happened, she would still be alive and well.
Another possibility is that Lucille Smith, Negan's first wife, could also make an appearance in The Walking Dead: Dead City season 3. Lucille took her own life after developing pancreatic cancer in an attempt to set Negan free from the responsibilities of taking care of her. But had she lived in a world without the walkers, she could have gotten the treatment she so desperately needed.
The alternate reality episode will serve to explore what Maggie's relationship with Negan would have been like if they had simpler lives. The two have constantly switched from enemies to allies, all the way back to enemies on the small screen, and it's all because Negan killed Maggie's husband, Glenn (a death that still haunts us to this day). But would removing such a tragic event really change the on-and-off rivalry between the two?
"As I began to think about the episode more," Hoffman continued, "the value from a series-wide perspective is that you get to see who Maggie and Negan would have been if the apocalypse didn't happen. Despite the terrible trauma, the awful things they've done and the awful things that have been done to them, you get to ask the question, 'Are these people better off having gone through the zombie apocalypse than they would have been if they hadn't gone through it?'"
Only time will tell which characters from The Walking Dead are returning to the small screen. On the bright side, we don't have to wait much longer to find out what surprises lie in store for us.
The opening episode of The Walking Dead: Dead City season 3 will be released on July 26, 2026.
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