The Walking Dead: The Ever-Expanding Universe Explained

After more than a decade of bloodshed, walkers, alliances and foes, the hit AMC series The Walking Dead will end later this year. Well, sort of. The post-apocalyptic series about Sheriff Rick Grimes (Andre Lincoln) who wakes up from a coma to find the world has been overrun by zombies (referred to as “walkers” in the series) has come a long way since its inception in 2010. Some characters we loved died too soon or left the series and conversely, some enemies that we were in a hurry to shake have overstayed their welcome. We’ve seen characters fall in love and fall in love, question their purpose in the new world, and do their best to stay alive.

The horror series, based on Robert Kirkman‘s graphic novels of the same name, continues to grow its huge fan base and has since spawned several spin-off projects that are in various stages of development. The first parallel stories began in 2011 with the web series Torn, which told the story of Hannah, the creepy bike-walker hybrid that Rick killed in the pilot. Then in anticipation of season 3 of the flagship series came Cold roomwhich told the story of a desperate man trying to find his sister, then The oathwhich explored the people behind the iconic “Don’t Open, Dead Inside” warning, and 2017 red machete gave us the origins of, well, Rick’s Red Machete that Gareth knew all too well. Heck, there’s even an aptly titled aftershow talking dead hosted by Chris Hardwick which dives deep into each episode with cast, creators and surprise guests.

It seems like every day we get closer to that series finale, AMC announces another one derivative project, making our inevitable “goodbyes” look like “see you later”. So cover yourself in walker guts. It’s time to dive into the ever-expanding world of The Walking Dead.

Fear the living dead (2015 – Present)

The first one real the taste we had for a spin-off came back in 2015 with Fear the living dead. Instead of being set in Atlanta, Georgia in the midst of the madness, the first three seasons are set in Los Angeles, California, and begin the pre-apocalypse. With full-screen dramatic irony, audiences are able to watch a blissfully oblivious family deal with the struggles that come with being human, not killing the dead. The series is led by high school counselor Madison Clark (Kim Dicken), who lives with her fiancé Travis (Cliff Curtis) and is busy raising her daughter Alicia (Alycia Debnam Carey) and his drug-addicted son Nick (Frank Dillane). Their normal life, as the title suggests, is increasingly plagued by fear, and more and more people around them succumb to this mysterious plague.

Season 4 reverses the roles a bit. The surviving members of the original cast, along with any stragglers they picked up along the way, meet Morgan Jones (Lennie James), a man that Rick Grimes and his fans The Walking Dead have a complicated relationship with. He brings his expertise and checkered past to his new band, for better or for worse. Another familiar face, albeit badly burned, joins the Season 5 cast. Negan’s former right-hand man, Dwight (Austin Improve) makes his way to the group once he is thrown to the sidewalk by Rick in The Walking Dead. And if that’s not enough, the spin-off has its own spin-offs on the web in Fear the Walking Dead: Flight 462, Fear the Walking Dead: Passageand The Althea Bands.

Fear the living deadwhich also features Jenna Elfman, Colman Domingoand Mo Collinswas recently renewed for an 8 season.

RELATED: ‘The Walking Dead’: 8 Actors Who Auditioned For Different Roles (And One Who Didn’t Audition At All)

The Walking Dead: World Beyond (2020 – 2021)

The Walking Dead: World Beyond is a little easier (or at least faster) to digest. Created by Scott M. Gimple and Matthew Negrete, this two-season limited event is set in Nebraska 10 years after the start of the apocalypse and follows the first generation into adulthood in this new, complicated and terrifying world. Blood, guts and walkers are all they know, and most likely, all they will do never to know. The four main teenagers the show focuses on are Iris Bennett (Royal Aliyah), her daring sister Hope (Alexa Mansoor), the morally ambiguous and dangerous Silas Plaskett (Hal Cumpston) and the curious 15-year-old Elton Ortiz (Nicolas Cantu).

If you are also I still wonder where The Walking Deadis once (Pollyanna McIntosh) took Rick in this helicopter in season 9, episode 5 entitled “What Comes After”, then season 2 of The Walking Dead: World Beyond may have answers. Jadis had been in contact with a group known as the Civic Republic at the time of the bridge explosion that nearly killed our favorite sheriff. (In fact, it was their helicopter that saved Rick.) In Season 2 of world beyond, we learn that Jadis is now part of their team trying to rebuild for the future. Could Rick be somewhere nearby, and maybe one of the first survivors to try their new serum?

Tales of the Living Dead (Summer 2022)

Created by Channing Powellwho has experience in both The Walking Dead and Fear the living deadthe upcoming series Tales of the Living Dead will consist of six standalone episodes that will focus on a different cast of old and new characters in the original world of The Walking Dead. This anthology series features the franchise’s most impressive cast to date, including Olivia Munn, Parker Posey, Terry Crews, Jillian Bell, Poppy Liuand Anthony Edwards.

Tales of the Living Dead is expected to air in the summer of 2022.

Untitled Rick Grimes Trilogy (Pre-production)

It’s almost time to find good old Grimes. Fans were completely devastated when they learned that Andrew Lincoln, who played lead character Rick Grimes for 9 seasons of the show, would be leaving the show. In typical Rick fashion, his final episode featured him risking his life for those he loved. Luckily, Rick somehow survived the bridge explosion and was rescued by Jadis’ helicopter and transported to an unknown location. Although this was the last time we saw the Sheriff on TV, we’re getting closer to seeing him on the big screen. That’s right, Andrew Lincoln signed a three-picture deal to star in the first The Walking Dead movies, which will be released exclusively in theaters and will focus on Rick’s whereabouts after that bonanza bridge moment. Michonne (Danai Gurira) and Jadis are also set to appear in the films, which will apparently deviate significantly from the source material.

The first of the trilogy is in pre-production.

Isle of the Dead (to be determined in 2023)

Maggie and Negan take manhattan? The latest spin-off The Walking Dead the universe to be announced is Isle of the Deadwhich will feature the most unlikely duo Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and Maggie (Lauren Cohan) in a series of six episodes. Fans of the original series know that Negan and Maggie didn’t get off to a good start (er, bat), since Negan brutally beat Maggie’s husband, Glenn Rhee (steven yeun) to death with Lucille, Negan’s barbed wire-laced baseball bat.

Ever since that gory moment, Maggie rightly hated Negan’s guts. But as the series progressed, viewers witnessed a kind of role reversal with the two survivors. Negan slowly evolved into a more gentle and level-headed person while Maggie, scarred by her past and worried about her future, took on a more ruthless persona. The last season of The Walking Dead planted the seeds for a fruitful history of the two enemies, both realizing that they have more in common than they would like to admit. Exactly How? ‘Or’ What they are heading to the Big Apple, however, remains a mystery.

Isle of the Dead should be released in 2023.

Untitled Carol and Daryl spin-off (to be determined in 2023)

It’s been clear from the very beginning that Carol (Melissa McBride) and Daryl (Norman Reedus) was something special. Whether they’re consoling the loss of loved ones or throwing acorns into a rusty tin can, these two might just be the best couple on the show. Luckily in 2020, it was announced that Daryl and Carol would indeed be directing their own series. Much of the series remains uncertain. Will walkers still rage? Will other established cast members sign on? Will Daryl get a haircut?

The Carol and Daryl series was created by Angela Kang and Scott M. Gimple, two creatives with their feet firmly planted in The Walking Dead world for many years. kang said Weekly entertainment in 2020, “[Carol and Daryl] are just at a different stage in their lives, and it’s more of a road show, which I think will be really fun. The two walker-warriors sometimes flirt with the idea of ​​running away together. That same post highlights a specific exchange the two had in the season 10 premiere, with Daryl telling Carol about his perfect world storyline. “No more fighting. Just get on the bike and go. See who stays,” Carol adding, “Sounds good to me. The untitled series is set to air in 2023.

The latest episodes of The Walking Dead airs Sundays on AMC.

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