The Walking Dead has big plans, but the AMC franchise may be setting up a future beyond its herd of spinoffs. The Walking Dead ended in 2022, capping off more than a decade of post-outbreak gloom and misery, but in many ways, the franchise is just getting started. Not only is Fear The Walking Dead staggering on for one more season, but Negan and Maggie will return in the NYC-based The Walking Dead: Dead City. Daryl Dixon has a spinoff set in France, Rick and Michonne's TV show will bring back Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira, and there may even be Tales of the Walking Dead season 2.
Although there will no shortage of The Walking Dead content over the next 12 months, questions remain over what comes after. Some or all of the aforementioned spinoffs may be granted second seasons, or The Walking Dead could simply end once its existing commitments are fulfilled. Several small hints in The Walking Dead's series finale also point toward a potential future crossover or reunion, bringing back all surviving big-hitters from the main show. Other clues, however, suggest AMC is playing a much longer game.
The Walking Dead Is Setting Up Its Next Generation
Looking at the current landscape of The Walking Dead, AMC may be subtly preparing a new generation of cast members to replace the old guard, culminating in a sequel show led by Judith Grimes. The Walking Dead's final episodes revolved heavily around young Judith, with the closing shot depicting her and brother RJ looking toward a brighter future. Although RJ seems to have taken a vow of silence, Judith in The Walking Dead has repeatedly proven her potential as a protagonist, often surpassing the older survivors for maturity, skill, and courage.
Judith's evolution alone is not enough to indicate The Walking Dead: The Next Generation could happen, but a glance across the wider franchise reveals other youthful characters are possibly being primed for bigger things. The Walking Dead: Dead City revolves around saving Hershel, who is visibly older, closer to the age Carl Grimes was when he died. This suggests Hershel could be a key component of The Walking Dead's future alongside Judith, while season 11 also made a bigger deal of Gracie, Aaron's daughter.
Walking Dead's Old Spinoffs Tease A Youth-Focused Future
Fear The Walking Dead is getting in on the act also. Fear The Walking Dead season 8, the original spinoff's final run, centers around Madison and Morgan saving the latter's daughter, Mo. Thanks to a time jump, Mo will be around the same age as Judith at the end of The Walking Dead, amplifying her importance to the story. Madison's own daughter, Alicia Clark, also has unfinished business following her ambiguous exit in Fear The Walking Dead season 7.
Young characters dominate The Walking Dead's future landscape even further thanks to The Walking Dead: World Beyond. The two-season spinoff ended with the Bennett sisters and their teenage friends taking a central role in battling the CRM and developing a biological weapon against the zombie virus, while their pal Silas became a spy inside the Civic Republic Military - two intriguing stories that have yet to pay off. Also considering that Eugene, Rosita, Negan, and Jerry all have tots of their own, Judith has a ready-made group of survivors to lead in The Walking Dead's future.
Just like how the MCU subtly sets up its Young Avengers by introducing the likes of Kate Bishop, Yelena Belova, Kid Loki, and Ironheart, The Walking Dead seems to be gradually aging up legacy characters, readying the kids to take over from what's left of Rick Grimes' group. Judith is perfectly poised as the leader, with RJ, Hershel, Mo and Gracie adopting key roles beside her. They could be joined by Alicia Clark, the Bennett sisters, and other fresh-faced survivors to spearhead an entirely new era after the current The Walking Dead spinoff plans end.
Walking Dead's Original Ending Featured An Older Judith (& Others)
For proof that AMC might seriously consider continuing The Walking Dead with a new generation, look no further than the show's original unused ending. The Walking Dead season 11 was originally supposed to conclude with older versions of Judith, RJ and their friends driving around Atlanta looking for survivors, with RJ now referring to himself as "Rick Grimes." Older actors were cast for Judith and the others, and behind-the-scenes images from this alternate ending later surfaced online. The ending would have passed the baton from one generation of The Walking Dead to the next, but was dropped to avoid clashing with 2023 and 2024's spinoff plans.
At the very least, the existence of this alternate The Walking Dead ending proves Judith leading a new gang of survivors in the zombie apocalypse was seriously considered. It is also easy to imagine that, had such an ending aired, it would have triggered speculation over a Judith-fronted The Walking Dead sequel series. The main show's ending may have been completely rewritten, but the appeal that inspired the initial plan remains intact. For now, it is logical for The Walking Dead to focus on Rick, Michonne, Daryl, Maggie, and Negan, tying up loose ends from the existing cast. After that, AMC may be tempted to revisit its "Future Judith" idea.
Why A Walking Dead Sequel With A New Generation Wouldn't Work
On its surface, the premise of The Walking Dead: Part II starring Judith, RJ, and various other offspring of beloved cast members sounds like an ideal way for AMC to continue its Walking Dead franchise. Peeling back the skin on that idea, however, the flesh underneath is still rotten. For a sequel series starring Judith Grimes to work, her group would need to be in desperate trouble every single episode - maybe in even more danger than her father's people, just to ramp up the stakes. Immediately, this raises questions over what the point of The Walking Dead seasons 1-11 actually was.
The entire point of Robert Kirkman's The Walking Dead comic books was that, by the time Rick Grimes died in the final chapters, he had left behind a better world. The zombie apocalypse was significantly less apocalyptic than when Rick's journey began. If a new The Walking Dead sequel series happens, featuring Judith Grimes as the successor to her father's heroic mantle, Rick's struggle has no meaning. If Judith becomes the hero, that inherently means Rick Grimes fought the Walking Dead and Walking Living for over a decade and made minimal lasting impact.
A youth-based The Walking Dead TV show would also fail to address the key issue currently facing the AMC franchise: zombie fatigue. Spreading seven different shows across almost 15 years, The Walking Dead has left no stone unturned when it comes to bringing zombies to life. Serious doubts hang over whether The Walking Dead: Dead City moving to New York and Daryl relocating to France will provide enough of a refresh to warrant those respective upcoming spinoffs. A The Walking Dead sequel series starring legacy characters lacks the massive reinvention that another a continuation of the story would need.