The Walking Dead star Melissa McBride is no longer set to star in a planned Carol/Daryl spin-off series, according to a recent report from Variety.
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The series, which was initially announced in September 2020, was set to star both McBride and Norman Reedus. Reedus was set to reprise his role as fan-favorite character Daryl Dixon. In a statement confirming the news, AMC noted the reason was due to the fact that the series will be set and filmed in Europe, and that relocating there for the summer became “logistically untenable” for the star.
“Melissa McBride has given life to one of the most interesting, real, human and popular characters in The Walking Dead Universe,” the statement reads. “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.”
Reddus and McBride both appeared in the initial season of The Walking Dead, and the characters of Daryl and Carol have remained throughout the series, surviving various encounters with the zombie-like monsters found in the show. Along the way, their characters became fan-favorites, with fans praising the chemistry that Reedus and McBride had together. That chemistry is what partially led to the development of the spin-off series.
The Carol/Daryl spin-off series is just one of many planned series set to be based on The Walking Dead, with a spin-off focused on Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Negan and Lauren Cohan’s Maggie also in the works. The episodic anthology series Tales of the Walking Dead, as well as the ongoing Fear the Walking Dead, are also still on AMC’s plate going forward.
The Walking Dead currently stars Norman Reedus, Melissa McBride, Lauren Cohan, Cailey Fleming, Josh McDermitt, Christian Serratos, Seth Gilliam, Ross Marquand, Khary Payton, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan. It also features Nadia Hilker, Lauren Ridloff, Cooper Andrews, Callan McAuliffe, Eleanor Matsuura, and Cassady McClincy.
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It is based on Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard’s comic series of the same name. Kirkman also executive produces the series along with Scott M. Gimple, Greg Nicotero, David Alpert, Joseph Incaprera, Gale Anne Hurd, and Denise Huth. Angela Kang has also returned as the showrunner for the final installment.
