Walking Dead Fans Think Melissa McBride was Replaced in Daryl Spinoff
Even though the core show is ending, The Walking Dead franchise has a bright future ahead with a number of announced spinoffs. However, the anticipated Daryl Dixon spinoff was also meant to include Melissa McBride’s Carol Peletier and fans think the actor was replaced by a younger actor instead of the previous relocation issue reported.
In addition to Norman Reedus’ Daryl Dixon spinoff, showrunners have already announced that Lauren Cohan and Jeffrey Dean Morgan will lead a Maggie and Negan spinoff, alongside the return of Andrew Lincoln and Dania Gurira’s Rick and Michonne series.
Initially developed by Frank Darabont with Angela Kang now serving as showrunner, The Walking Dead is based on the comic book series of the same name by Robert Kirkman and stars Norman Reedus, Melissa McBride, Lauren Cohan, Danai Gurira, Josh McDermitt, Ross Marquand, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan.
The Walking Dead Season 11 – Official Teaser Trailer
Melissa McBride Exits Daryl Spinoff
Back in April 2022, Variety reported that long-serving Walking Dead actor McBride was no longer going to star in the once Daryl-Carol spinoff.
The spinoff will now focus solely on Daryl and the main reason given for McBride’s exit was relocation issues while the team filmed in Europe.
Below, we have included AMC’s full statement:
“Melissa McBride has given life to one of the most interesting, real, human and popular characters in ‘The Walking Dead’ Universe. Unfortunately, she is no longer able to participate in the previously announced spin-off focused on the Daryl Dixon and Carol Peletier characters, which will be set and filmed in Europe this summer and premiere next year. Relocating to Europe became logistically untenable for Melissa at this time. We know fans will be disappointed by this news, but ‘The Walking Dead’ Universe continues to grow and expand in interesting ways and we very much hope to see Carol again in the near future.”
Walking Dead Fans Think McBride was Replaced by a Younger Actor
Speculation surrounding McBride’s replacement in the show by a younger actor surfaced when Harry Potter and Tenet star Clémence Poésy joined the spin-off.
One fan stated that McBride may have found it difficult to return to the franchise amidst “ageist bulls***” and the spinoff proceeded to replace her character with someone “17 years younger.”
Furthermore, it was also rumored that AMC moved filming to France, which left McBride in a difficult situation, because they wanted to part ways with her character after sidelining Carol from most of Season 11 in the parent show.
The Walking Dead Series Finale
The Walking Dead series finale, titled Rest in Peace, will be the 24th episode of Season 11, due to release on Sunday, November 20, 2022.
The finale is confirmed to be an extended episode, coming in with a 90-minute runtime including commercials.
The series finale will be directed by The Walking Dead veteran Greg Nicotero and it is expected to pave the way for further spinoff shows to come.
Below, we highlight the release dates of the remaining episodes in Part 3:
- Episode 22: Family – November 13, 2022
- Episode 24: Rest in Peace – November 20, 2022
By Jo Craig – [email protected]
The Walking Dead Season 11 is now streaming on AMC.
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Jo Craig
@https://twitter.com/shingeekyjo
Jo Craig is a staff writer at GRV Media reporting pop culture content on Forever Geek and brainstorming with the HITC Entertainment team. After nearly a decade in the game, Jo finds dissecting Marvel trailers for hours standard practice and still finds time to review, analyse, and research film, anime, video games and everything on the nerdy spectrum. Maintaining a strong social media presence, Jo’s passion for contributing to the geek culture community is a staple in their work and the spark behind vibrant discussions with comrades, even though some disagree that The Lord of the Rings is the best franchise.
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