The Walking Dead franchise has been around for a very long time. The beloved original series first made its way onto AMC back in 2010 when the pilot episode introduced audiences to Rick Grimes and kickstarted his adventure with the undead. Needless to say, history was made that day.
As we come up on the 15th anniversary of The Walking Dead's premiere, it's truly a testament to the popularity of the shared universe that all involved have created that there are still some of these shows on the air. Even after the original series bowed out in 2022, the TWD Universe has continued, meaning that fans can still catch up with the likes of Daryl Dixon, Carol Peletier, Maggie Rhee and Negan. Heck, we even got the chance to catch up with Rick and Michonne last year when their spinoff The Ones Who Live concluded their legendary love story.
Speaking of conclusions, fans have been increasingly worried about what the future holds for the TWD Universe now that this next wave of spinoffs have started wrapping up. With the recent announcement that Daryl Dixon would end after its fourth season, it's unclear if there are more stories to tell - either internationally like Daryl or back in the US. Well, at least it was until the man behind the TWD Universe made a pretty exciting announcement during a recent interview.
TWD boss Scott M. Gimple confirms franchise's future, teases more international spinoffs
It sounds like the days of The Walking Dead Universe are not numbered after all. At least not according to AMC's Chief Content Officer of The Walking Dead Universe. The man who has worked directly on multiple shows within this franchise and overseen all of them spoke to Screen Rant ahead of the upcoming third season of Daryl Dixon and he revealed that there are still plans for the franchise beyond these current spinoffs and that they might even remain in international territories.
When asked outright whether more international spinoffs could succeed Daryl Dixon, Gimple answered: "I mean, absolutely," before going on to add that Daryl and Carol were essential to bringing this particular story to life as its anchors but that future spinoffs - international or not - might not need recognizable anchors like this one. Most important of all, he said that the hope is for viewers to see other parts of the world in this franchise before he concluded with: "So the answer is yes."
He said:
"I mean, absolutely. And I will say even before Daryl and Carol, we were experimenting with some things and we got kind of down the road on some things. It was really Daryl and Carol who could make that a reality. So we needed that kind of anchor to it. But having proven what it is, I really do hope to see other parts of the world, and they don’t necessarily need an anchoring character anymore... the audience is wondering about other places in the world. Getting those, not really as answers like, “Ah, that’s how it went,” [but] getting them stories has been incredibly gratifying. And it’s this series, Daryl Dixon, that has brought it to life and has shown how vibrant that storytelling can be. So the answer is yes."
The idea of more international spinoffs is obviously very exciting. The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon is arguably the most vivid of all the newer class of TWD spinoffs as it's the first to truly show us what the world looks like outside of the US. Although Fear The Walking Dead did take audiences to Mexico, it was Daryl that ventured to another continent and confirmed that the walkers lived over there too. And the cinematography is absolutely stunning, showcasing sights that fans of this franchise have wondered about for years.
Now that the-powers-that-be know it's possible to film these shows in international locations, it sounds like there could be scope to do another in the future. After all, Daryl Dixon is the blueprint; it's not just taken us to France, as the third and (presumably) fourth seasons are set in Spain (with the season 3 premiere now set to take us to London for a bit too). So if it's possible to take the franchise's most beloved characters to new locations, it's certainly possible to create spinoffs based on newer characters in new locations, too.
What's most exciting of all, however, is that Gimple's comments very much suggest that there is still a future for The Walking Dead franchise.
Fans needed to hear this after the Daryl Dixon news this summer
Make no mistake about it: The potential of more international Walking Dead spinoffs is a very exciting prospect. Scott Gimple has alluded to the franchise trying other things in the past and it's awesome to hear that those plans are still on the table. But it's the second part of that announcement that is the most important thing here, as it confirms that there is still a future for the franchise beyond the current spinoffs - something that fans were beginning to fear wasn't the case.
This is the first time that Gimple has addressed the future of the TWD Universe since it was revealed that Daryl Dixon would end with its fourth season. The spinoff has been highly successful and arguably the one of the three spinoffs that had the most legs, so the announcement surprised people. Even with fellow spinoff Dead City getting renewed for a third season, fans aren't expecting that one to go beyond three or four seasons, so there were instant question marks around the future of the franchise.
Although there has been talks of more spinoffs before, recent years have remained focused on the three that were currently airing. With The Ones Who Live only revealing its status as a miniseries after it concluded, Daryl Dixon ending, and a clear shelf life for how long Dead City could go on for, it's understandable that those fans are worried that the world of The Walking Dead might be coming to a close.
Needless to say, to hear Gimple announce that he and his fellow TWD creatives are still discussing ideas for the next wave of the franchise is a very promising sign for the future of the TWD Universe. We just hope that some kind of reunion project that could potentially bring all of these classic characters back together might be on the horizon.
Until then, though, we'll happily take more TWD spinoffs, especially larger-than-life international ones!