Before The Walking Dead caused TV zombies to explode in popularity, the leaked pilot for canceled CBS show Babylon Fields became a cult hit. While the subject of zombies had been broached before on TV, it was The Walking Dead that really established the zombie apocalypse genre as something that could work on the small screen. However, The Walking Dead premiered in 2010, and CBS was prepping a drama starring the undead several years prior, in 2007.
Created by the trio of Michael Cuesta, Gerald Cuesta, and Michael Atkinson, Babylon Fields foreshadowed how big of a deal zombies would become for TV, as from the moment the project was announced, buzz surrounded it. That was partly due to its mostly unique plot. Instead of zombies coming back to devour the living, they mostly just wanted to resume their lives and move on, or maybe put right something that had gone wrong for them prior to shuffling off the mortal coil for the first time.
Only the 2004 French film Les Revenants (They Came Back in English) had really done something too similar prior, and American audiences were largely unfamiliar with that. Throw in a cast of recognizable actors like Ray "The Punisher" Stevenson, Amber Tamblyn, Kathy Baker, and Jamey "Randall Flagg" Sheridan, and it sounds like a recipe for a hit. Instead, CBS pulled the plug before Babylon Fields even premiered.
Babylon Fields: How the Canceled Pre-Walking Dead Zombie Show Became a Cult Hit
While CBS never provided an explanation publicly as to why they didn't pick up Babylon Fields to series, for a time, all reports suggested it was a lock to happen. When the network failed to add it to the 2007 fall schedule, they even left the door open for it to be added to midseason 2008. But instead, Babylon Fields fell by the wayside. However, while CBS never intended to release the pilot, it somehow got leaked online. The quality wasn't great, but it allowed those disappointed by CBS' decision to see what could have been. While the pilot's decidedly off-kilter nature - including lots of dark humor and a subplot about how being a zombie has really improved a man's sex life - probably points the way toward why CBS wasn't impressed, those who watched Babylon Fields tended to like it.
Sadly, this wasn't a Deadpool leak situation though, as the positive response to the leaked pilot from horror fans didn't motivate CBS to reconsider picking up the series. It did, however, almost get a second life in 2013, as the success of The Walking Dead had led NBC to commission a new pilot for the potential show. Notable names like Skeet Ulrich, Meagan Good, and Virginia Madsen were cast this time, but again, and without explanation, Babylon Fields' new pilot never made it to air. Sadly, this one didn't get leaked. Maybe one day Babylon Fields will actually get to realize its potential, but until then, fans will always have the original pilot shambling around online.