The Influence of The Walking Dead

As we approach the end of the final season of The Walking Dead, it is time to look at the influence of the post-apocalyptic horror show and how it has remained so popular for so long.

One measure of the success of the Walking Dead is its longevity. The series is now in its eleventh and final season, but the franchise will live on in various spin-offs in the form of TV shows and movies. Indeed, there has already been a wide range of TV spinoffs including Fear the Walking Dead and Tales of the Walking Dead.

Beyond TV

The show has exerted a huge influence on the entertainment industry as a whole. In addition to the TV show, there is The Walking Dead video game series developed and published by Telltale Games, which contains innovative narrative elements that influence the plot of the game itself as players choose between various options which have repercussions for the rest of the game.

Another innovation can be found in the gambling industry with the Walking Dead online slot and Walking Dead scratchcard at Buzz Bingo, which offers a slot bonus to new players. Featuring characters from the show in order to attract fans, the availability of these slot games really demonstrates the popularity of The Walking Dead and its association with innovative products.

It’s Only Just Begun

So, while The Walking Dead TV series is ending, there are a number of ways in which fans of the show can still engage with the franchise.

Walking Dead director and executive producer Greg Nicotero has spoken of the pressure of providing fans with a fitting end to the final season: “All of us, especially those of us who have been on the show since the beginning, want to go out strong. We want people to remember why they fell in love with The Walking Dead. It is no joke because we really want it to be amazing.”

The Walking Dead TV series was actually based on the comic book of the same name created in 2003 by Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore. The most popular characters in the show are Rick Grimes, played by Andrew Lincoln until he left the show in 2018, and Daryl Dixon, portrayed by Norman Reedus, who has appeared in most episodes.

As well as Walking Dead spin-offs, the series has also inspired a rise in the popularity of the genre in general with various TV shows and movies since the Walking Dead TV series was first broadcast in 2010. There is Train to Busan, a South Korean horror film released in 2016, which borrows from the Walking Dead with its zombie apocalypse storyline and won over critics and cinemagoers alike.

Army of the Dead, a zombie heist film distributed by Netflix in 2021, is another example of the genre which has been heavily influenced by The Walking Dead. The movie centers around a city populated by zombies and it tells the tale of mercenaries who are trying to retrieve $200 million from a casino vault before a bomb explodes.

The Walking Dead has not only inspired various TV and movie spin-offs since it burst onto the scene in 2010, but it has also influenced the video game industry with its innovations. While the original series will end in 2022, there will be no shortage of spin-offs in the form of TV shows and video games for fans of The Walking Dead to enjoy in the future.

Jack Potter

“Entrepreneur. Freelance introvert. Creator. Passionate reader. Certified beer ninja. Food nerd.”