AMC envisions no limit for how long The Walking Dead could stay on the air

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

While AMC is losing BREAKING BAD this summer and MAD MEN possibly after next season, it would seem natural to discuss the potential end date for THE WALKING DEAD. But, the funny thing is, AMC CEO Josh Sapan sees no reason why THE WALKING DEAD couldn’t air for five, ten, even twenty more seasons.

The Hollywood Reporter quotes Sapan at the Barclays Global Technology, Media and Telecommunications Conference as he discussed the future of cable programming in light of the success with original series on Netflix such as HOUSE OF CARDS and the upcoming premiere of the fourth season of ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT.

sponsored content

“We hope that zombies live forever and we’ve just begun to find out what the post-apocalyptic world is like,” said Sapan, “so that we’ll be sitting here at the Barclays conference in 2022 discussing the fact that Walking Dead is not over … at that point, I think any one of the companies will have replaced the United States government and we’ll be in a complete free enterprise world in which there are no nations.”

THE WALKING DEAD is a large ensemble cast, much like LOST. But, when LOST tried to introduce new characters it felt forced since there were a limited number of survivors on the island. When those from off island arrived, they joined the cast more naturally. With THE WALKING DEAD, we have spent the vast majority of the series in one small area in Georgia. There is an entire country that could be explored. And, as time goes on, characters can be killed off and replaced with new ones as the story progresses. THE WALKING DEAD has been doing this successfully as a comic for over 100 issues with only a small core group still alive from issue #1.

While 20 seasons of THE WALKING DEAD may be a stretch, I don’t see any reason to doubt that this show could carry on with a rotating cast for a long time. Do you disagree?

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Tags: AMC, Andrew Lincoln, Horror, Series, Television, The Walking Dead, Zombies

About the Author

Alex Maidy

TV Critic / Columnist

6,351 Articles Published Started writing in 2012

Favorite Movies: Being There, The Shining, The Royal Tenenbaums, Suspiria, Seven, North By read more Northwest, Citizen Kane, The Monster Squad, Begotten, Fight Club, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Army of Darkness, Children of Men, Blade Runner, The Big Lebowski, Casino, Pi, Dumb and Dumber, The 400 Blows, Small Change, Bonnie & Clyde, Cool Hand Luke, Moulin Rouge, Gangs of New York, Shallow Grave, The Rock, The Incredibles, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, The Gate, Prince of Darkness, Oldboy, The Dark Knight, The Lord of the Rings, The Tree of Life, The Exorcist III, Midnight Special

Likes: To piss you off, unpopular opinions, the novels of Stephen King, read more obscure bands that even hipsters dont know, things that go boom, Reeses Pieces, Cate Blanchett, reading paper books, watching people falling down, a good jump scare, listening to a full album in one sitting, rooting for the underdog, red band trailers, rare steaks, cool beer labels, smooth whisky, properly proportioned image files, top ten lists, VHS tapes, and actually scary movies

The comment section exists to allow readers to discuss the article constructively and respectfully, focused on the topic at hand.

What’s Not Allowed

Abusive language, insults, or harassment toward other users or staff.
Hate speech of any kind is strictly prohibited.
Bickering, bullying, personal attacks, or baiting others to argue
Extended off-topic debates, especially those centered on politics or religion rather than the article topic
No AI content or SPAM