Is ‘The Walking Dead’ actually over?

Robert Kirman’s The Walking Dead is one of the most famous and successful universes to jump from comic book to television screen. The writer/producer came out with the first issue of his zombie-infested work in 2003, and it was later adapted into an AMC show. But for those who stopped following The Walking Dead some time back, did the dystopian story end?

If anyone has read the comics and watched the show, they’d emphatically state that there are stark differences between the two. For example, major characters who survived in the television franchise were slain in the comics, and vice versa.

There’s also been a lot more world-building in AMC’s rendition of the show — so much so that 14 years later, The Walking Dead continues. Not the show proper, however. The Walking Dead ran from 2010 to 2022, and the curtains closed after the 11th season. But, without giving away too many spoilers, three spin-off shows were born from the flagship series’ ending. Perrenial fan-favorite Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) leads The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, the complicated relationship between Negan Smith (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and Maggie Rhee (Lauren Cohan) heads The Walking Dead: Dead City, and the dynamic duo of Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and Michonne Hawthorne (Danai Gurira) starred in The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live.

The first season of each show has aired, and Daryl Dixon and Dead City are both getting a second season. The spin-offs have given The Walking Dead a fresh coat of paint after the flagship show’s swan song. They take viewers to new parts of the United States, as well as across the pond to France. And, judging by the storylines, it doesn’t seem like The Walking Dead’s television universe is ending anytime soon. Even if prior spin-offs — Fear the Walking Dead, The Walking Dead: World Beyond, and Tales of the Walking Dead — have all concluded.

As for Kirkman’s comics, he published the final issue of The Walking Dead in 2019. All in all, 193 comics came out, and the story roughly ended where The Walking Dead’s mainline series stopped. According to Comic Book Resources, Kirkman has clearly stated he has no intentions of continuing his comic universe.

“Lots of people asking for a new series here,” Kirkman wrote at the back of The Walking Dead Deluxe #55. “The closest we’ll likely come to this is an entirely new series from me that’s completely separate from TWD but has subject matter that would appeal to TWD fans. That’s the best I could do at this point.”

So, if someone is clamoring for new content from The Walking Dead’s universe, they’ll have to continue tuning into AMC’s army of TWD series.