Despite already getting his own spinoff, Daryl could secretly be a part of Rick Grimes’ The Walking Dead show. Originally, Rick was supposed to return in a trilogy of theatrical movies for AMC. However, it’s since been confirmed that he’ll be headed back to the small screen instead.
AMC has a Walking Dead spinoff in development which is poised to continue the journey of Andrew Lincoln’s Rick Grimes and Danai Guriria’s Michonne. Apparently, it’ll deal directly with the story teased by Michonne’s season 10 exit. After years of assuming that Rick had died in the explosion, Michonne discovered that he was still out there somewhere. Now, it seems the franchise is finally ready to explore what came next. According to a description for the spinoff released at San Diego Comic-Con 2022, their new series will explore their efforts to reunite with each other in the midst of a “war against the living”.
Though everything said about the spinoff emphasizes Rick and Michonne’s relationship, nothing rules out other Walking Dead characters showing up. In fact, details regarding Daryl’s future in the franchise make him a strong candidate for inclusion. Norman Reedus has said that even though his upcoming spinoff no longer involves Carol (Melissa McBride), the two will eventually meet again. At SDCC 2022, he claimed that his spinoff’s story is a “mission” that Daryl will do “in the meantime” while McBride takes a break from scheduling. For this reason, it certainly sounds like AMC intends for Daryl to appear in more than just a single spinoff. It could be that the plan is for both him and Carol to appear alongside Rick and Michonne in their own series.
How The Walking Dead Is Already Setting Up A Rick & Daryl Story
Based on how The Walking Dead season 11 is building up to a massive Rick Grimes reveal, Daryl crossing paths with Rick does feel like the direction the franchise is slowly taking the character. So far, the show has danced around Daryl finding out the truth from Judith, but has also been teasing it at the same time. Plus, Daryl has been seen holding Rick’s gun in the marketing for The Walking Dead season 11 part 3, which makes it more likely that an earnest conversation with Judith about Rick is coming. When that happens, Daryl could embark on a long adventure to find him. His upcoming spinoff could be something that happens between The Walking Dead’s ending and Rick’s new show.
Depending on how filming schedules line up, Daryl and Rick sharing the screen together feels like a real possibility. After all, AMC’s announcement about Rick’s show never confirmed that the story will end with just six episodes. Since a continuation of the series could very well be on the table, Daryl and Carol could appear in a potential season 2 if there’s no room for them in season 1. Either way, it’s unlikely that The Walking Dead will end Daryl’s story without some sort of reunion with Rick Grimes.