How and why did The Walking Dead‘s plans for season 12 change over the years? Launching in October 2010, AMC’s The Walking Dead translated Robert Kirkman’s comic books into a wonderfully gory live-action setting. By the time its third season wrapped, The Walking Dead had grown into a cable ratings juggernaut, breaking records for fun and infesting the mainstream’s cultural consciousness. 10 years and 2 spinoffs later, the Walking Dead franchise finds itself in a drastically different place, but before a new era begins, the existing one must end. The Walking Dead season 11 marks the main show’s final run, bringing 12 years of bites, beheadings and barely-audible mumbling to a close.
Though The Walking Dead season 12 isn’t happening, that wasn’t necessarily always so. In the “Letter Hacks” section of issue #161 in 2016, Robert Kirkman was asked about the future of AMC’s Walking Dead TV show in relation to his comic. The writer replied with, ”It took us 6 seasons to get to [issue] 100, it won’t take us 6 years to get to 200 and that will take us to season … TWELVE. And we’ll still be ahead of the show at that point.” While Kirkman’s answer certainly isn’t confirmation that everyone behind the scenes was banking on The Walking Dead reaching season 12, the quote does at least prove he and AMC were entertaining the possibility. More recently, Jeffrey Dean Morgan (The Walking Dead‘s Negan) confirmed season 11 wasn’t the intended end-point. So why did The Walking Dead‘s season 12 designs never materialize?
One potential factor is the abrupt surprise ending to The Walking Dead‘s comic series. Robert Kirkman’s “it won’t take us 6 years to get to 200” comment suggested that, at the time, he was considering a double-century with Rick Grimes. In July 2019, however, the final issue (#193) of The Walking Dead released sans fanfare or warning. In a letter to fans, Kirkman explained how he originally planned to write as far as issue #300, but came to realize he didn’t have enough material. The Walking Dead creator also described trying to expand his story, before ultimately giving in and opting to make the Commonwealth arc his final stand. When Kirkman was talking about issue #200 and season 12 in 2016, therefore, perhaps he was still of a mind to continue Rick’s story. Or maybe he knew the end was nigh, but wanted to maintain the veil of secrecy that continued all the way through to issue #193’s release. Either way, a 12-season run was always going to be tight with less than 200 issues to draw from.
With the CRM and fast zombie storylines incoming, The Walking Dead is moving well beyond the limits of its source material, meaning an early comic ending cannot be the sole reason The Walking Dead never produced that mooted twelfth season. Inevitably, ratings must’ve played their part. When Kirkman’s comments were made in 2016, The Walking Dead was in its seventh season, at the height of its powers. Nevertheless, a decline was emerging, and numbers have fallen significantly season upon season. Were The Walking Dead still pulling double-digit ratings in seasons 10 and 11, a season 12 would’ve surely come to pass. And if AMC was already eyeing its zombie viewership with concern, the arrival of a very real pandemic might’ve sealed The Walking Dead‘s fate.
There’s also the loss of Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes to consider. Departing early in The Walking Dead season 9, the zombie apocalypse continued on bravely without its original lead, but like most TV shows who lose their star (The Office, Two & A Half Men, etc.), its days felt numbered. Those season 12 dreams slipped further away.
Perhaps The Walking Dead‘s season 12 change of plans has more to do with audience viewing habits and shifting business models. A lack of comic books, dwindling ratings, and departing actors all played their part in bringing The Walking Dead to an early close, but the volume of spinoffs and movies in the pipeline – as well as setup for big future storylines – suggests AMC values The Walking Dead more as a multi-platform brand than as the traditional “main show plus spinoffs” format. As streaming increasingly dominates, the MCU, Star Trek, Star Wars and many more are heading in that direction. The Walking Dead might be joining that esteemed club before long.
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