Well, this looks different.
AMC shared the first footage of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon Sunday night during The Walking Dead: Dead City Season 1 Episode 1.
The latest spinoff in the expansive TWD universe picks up with Daryl as he “washes ashore in France and struggles to piece together how he got there and why,” the network’s official description teases.
“The series tracks his journey across a broken but resilient France as he hopes to find a way back home.”
“As he makes the journey, though, the connections he forms along the way complicate his ultimate plan.”
The clip shows Norman Reedus as Daryl in an overturned boat in the middle of the ocean.
Given the mind-numbing trajectory of Fear the Walking Dead Season 8, we wouldn’t be surprised if the next chapter in the franchise tried to imply that Daryl floated across the ocean and landed in France.
But, the more likely scenario is that Daryl is on a bot of some sort and becomes shipwrecked, thus, setting up his next big battle for survival.
Last seen on The Walking Dead Season 11 Episode 24, Daryl left the cushy Commonwealth in search of Rick (Andrew Lincoln), and, given that Lincoln will headline a show alongside Danai Gurira, we’re inclined to believe the Paris-set series will have some teases before Rick and Michonne’s return in 2024.
Despite the main series wrapping up, AMC seems intent on keeping the franchise alive by shipping the most popular characters off to spinoffs.
Melissa McBride was initially set to join Reedus on this latest series, but that plan fell apart.
“Melissa McBride has given life to one of the most interesting, real, human and popular characters in The Walking Dead Universe,” a statement from AMC, released in April 2022, reads.
“Unfortunately, she is no longer able to participate in the previously announced spinoff 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,” the statement concluded.
The new series also stars Clémence Poésy as Isabelle, part of a progressive religious group.
Additional cast includes Anne Charrier (The Last Deadly Mission) as Genet, Eriq Ebanouey (Fox Hunt) as Fallou, Laika Blanc Francard (My Night) as Sylvie, Romain Levi (The Tunnel) as Codron, and Louis Puech Scigliuzzi as Laurent.
Check out the teaser below and hit the comments with your thoughts.
It looks very different.
Daryl is about to be a fish out of water…
Did you catch the #DarylDixon tease during #DeadCity? pic.twitter.com/0Am5RFL76v
— The Walking Dead (@WalkingDead_AMC) June 19, 2023
Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.
