The Walking Dead Refusing Actors Strike?

By Britta DeVore | Updated

walking dead dead city

Although the writers of Hollywood may have returned to their jobs, penning scripts for your favorite TV shows and movies, the actors are still picketing. And, while many won’t return to work until the union reaches a fair deal, ComicBook reports that The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon will pick up filming on its second season next week. But don’t worry, and there’s no need to boycott the franchise just yet.

AMC Networks is moving forward with filming more series in The Walking Dead franchise, even while the SAG-AFTRA strike shows no signs of being resolved.

Back in August, AMC Networks worked out a deal with SAG-AFTRA that would allow the studio to continue working on both The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon and The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live as well as the second season of Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire. According to the agreement, SAG-AFTRA won’t be penalizing any of the cast and crew returning to work on these productions.

So, how can AMC Networks get away with kicking off filming on two of its The Walking Dead spin-offs and Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire? The answer lies in the fact that while the studio is an “authorized company,” it isn’t part of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers – the group that SAG-AFTRA is striking against. Along with the trio of AMC shows, more than 300 other “independent” projects have been given the go-ahead from SAG-AFTRA to continue work.

The Walking Dead

Knowing a hit when they saw one, AMC ordered a second season of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon before the first one aired. It was a great choice as the debut episode was the network’s most-watched premiere of all time. Since then, viewership numbers have still been terrific for the Norman Reedus-led series, with audiences eager to join Daryl for the next journey in his life.

On top of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, the other show from the franchise that will pick up cameras and begin to work again is The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live.

In The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, the titular zombie slasher is back and ready for more action, but this time he’s in France. After mysteriously washing up on the country’s shores, Daryl embarks on a new mission that sees him taking care of a young boy who seems to be humanity’s only hope for survival. Tasked with getting the child to safety, Daryl just can’t turn down an opportunity to be a hero and save the boy’s life.

Along with Norman Reedus reprising his role from the flagship series, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon also stars Clémence Poésy, Louis Puech Scigliuzzi, Anne Charrier, Adam Nagaitis, Romain Levi, and Laïka Blanc-Francard. After holding their breath for the entire season, audiences finally learned today that Melissa McBride will be reprising her role as Carol Peletier for the show’s second season. 

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon is moving forward with a new season following its successful debut, which will include Melissa McBride as Carol.

On top of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, the other show from the franchise that will pick up cameras and begin to work again is The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live. That series will follow the lives of Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and Michonne Grimes (Danai Gurira) as they search for one another following the events of the flagship show’s series finale.

Fans of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon are preparing for the final episode of the first season, which will be available on Sunday, October 15, at 9 p.m. ET/PT. With showrunner David Zabel telling ComicBook that they were ready to get the second season fired up, more updates are sure to be on the way soon about what audiences can expect from the sophomore installment.