The Walking Dead will end its eleven-season run with the final eight episodes beginning in October, and while the end of the mothership series will be met with sadness, there is plenty of life left in the franchise.
Multiple spin-off series have been announced and are currently in production. Walking Dead: Dead City will follow the exploits of Maggie and Negan as they explore a New York City which is overrun by the dead, and a yet untitled Rick and Michonne spin-off will see Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira return.
Another series announced sees Norman Reedus heading to France for his very own Daryl Dixon spin-off that will serve as a follow-up to the main show, as well as connecting to the mid-credits scene at the end of The Walking Dead: World Beyond.
Reedus is currently in France as production for the series has begun, and the actor has offered up more insight on the show’s conception and how it will be different to anything seen in The Walking Dead Universe. He also shared his excitement for the spin-off, saying “This is going to be f—ng epic.”
The series is set to “follow Daryl as he wakes up and finds himself somewhere on the European continent and tries to piece together what happened. How did he get here? How’s he going to get home?”
But according to the actor, that was not always the plan.
Speaking in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Reedus said:
“These talks about the spin-off had been going on for two years. It was a good year before they announced that The Walking Dead was going to end. And over the course of time, it kind of changed directions multiple times.”
Originally, the spin-off was set to follow both Daryl Dixon and Carol Peletier, with both Reedus and Melissa McBride set to star, but McBride dropped out of the project once production moved overseas.
Reedus continued to explain that the new series will stand on its own, feeling very different to the main show.
“We knew we wanted to make a show that went in the opposite direction. just because we didn’t want to do the same thing. So that’s what we’re doing. And it’s going to be way different. The story’s way different. The characters are way different. There’s a different tone, there’s different light, there’s a different sound. It’s a whole different vibe. I’ve been going on location scouts here and stuff, but it’s even more than just location. It’s all the things we love about those characters and those shows, but It’s going to be brand new, which I’m excited about.”
Daryl Dixon’s exploits in France are set to air sometime in 2023.