'The Walking Dead' is Coming to an End
by EG
The Walking Dead is limping toward a finale, as the one-time biggest show on cable TV has lost the majority of its peak audience over the past few years. The show will end after its eleventh season, although in typical TWD fashion, that's a little misleading. "Season 11" will have almost twice as many episodes as usual and will air over the course of two years, making it essentially two seasons. And after TWD ends, AMC and the series creators will try to keep the franchise alive with more spin offs, movies, and various other projects. Read on for details.
It's the end of the world as we know it — but the Walking Dead franchise feels fine.
On the one hand, it's major news: The Walking Dead, one of the modern television era's biggest hits, is ending with season 11. On the other hand, it's no surprise at all, on a number of levels: the franchise will live on past the flagship series, with at least two planned spinoffs in the form of a Daryl Dixon and Carol Peletier series starring Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride, as well as anthology series Tales of The Walking Dead — not to mention Fear the Walking Dead and The Walking Dead: World Beyond, both of which are still active as it stands.
Add this to the list of reasons why the series' ending shouldn't register as a huge surprise, at least no more surprising than the ending of Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard's comic book in 2019: well … exactly that. Kirkman and Adlard rocked the Walking Dead fandom with an unannounced ending to their historic comic book run with The Walking Dead #193, an issue that takes place several decades after the main action of the series, showing how several beloved characters settled into life after the zombie apocalypse became somewhat more civilized. If nothing else, at least AMC's Walking Dead is giving fans plenty of time to prepare their goodbyes, as the series' announced ending won't come for another 30 episodes; more than enough time to invest in your tissue brand of choice.
As for the particulars of how The Walking Dead will end … once again, we wade into the territory of "no surprise at all," since this is a series deeply rooted in source material. Kirkman and Adlard's tale has always been the guide, even though the show has veered away from the events of the comic book, sometimes out of an interest in shaking things up, and other times out of necessity. Changes have ranged from minor to drastic. As The Walking Dead begins its final descent, one can imagine the ways in which showrunner Angela Kang's vision will have aspects of both.
Get the rest of the story at The Hollywood Reporter.
Are you still watching The Walking Dead? Let us know in the comments below.