The Walking Dead wrapped up its eighth season last Sunday, finally bringing the long-running conflict with the Saviors to an end. You’d think that would give the ratings for AMC’s zombie drama a boost, then, but it turns out that many viewers just weren’t as hyped for this closer as in previous years. In fact, “Wrath” was the least-watched TWD finale since back in season 1.
In terms of season 8 itself, the finale’s total of 7.9 million viewers is pretty impressive, as it’s a fair bit more than the average 6-7 million that most 2017-2018 episodes have achieved. However, in the context of the entire show, that’s just over 30% down from season 7’s finale a year ago and, like mentioned above, is the second lowest rating for a TWD finale since the first season only drew 5.97 million viewers back in December 2010.
Any Walking Dead fans worrying about the future of the franchise can rest easy, however, as it’s definitely not going anywhere. The producers are keeping their lips sealed on what exactly’s coming in season 9, but – if the comic books are anything to go by – they’ll likely introduce a new storyline that will take several seasons to unfold. It’ll probably have something to do with the Whisperers, too.
On the bright side, Fear the Walking Dead‘s season 4 premiere got its highest rating since its very first episode back in 2016. That’s undoubtedly because it saw the first crossover between Fear and its parent show, with Lennie James’ Morgan Jones joining the cast (and cameos for a bunch of other characters, too). In total, the premiere drew 4.1 million viewers, which is second only to the 6.67 that tuned in for the series’ pilot.
The Walking Dead is now on its usual summer break before it returns in the Fall. Fear the Walking Dead, meanwhile, is currently unfolding on Sundays on AMC in its place.
