In a recent interview with Marc Maron on the WTF podcast, The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman discussed the future of AMC’s smash hit series. Five seasons after its premiere, The Walking Dead is still one of the most successful shows in the history of cable television, regularly drawing in record audiences for the network.
But despite the fact that the show will likely be around for many seasons to come, Kirkman still believes that viewers will be pleasantly surprised to see how the story wraps up.
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“It’s a very popular show, and [AMC] seem to want it to go for 50 seasons. And it may go for 50 seasons, but there is definitely an end point at some point,” Kirkman told Maron.
“The idea is that this story that’s longer than it has any business being, but it’s that length and watching those characters evolve over that time that’s gonna make it be this piece, that when it’s all done, you’ll look back on it and be like ‘what the hell, I thought they were just killing zombies. There’s totally an arc here and a thing going on, and I didn’t think the story was about this!’”
As for whether or not the Kirkman thinks the survivors will eventually find a cure (or just kill all the zombies): ““Maybe. You never know. I do hope that ‘The Walking Dead’ goes on long enough that when it ends, it’s like, ‘good thing we took care of those zombies.’”
If you’re at all invested in the show or Kirkman’s original (and on-going) comic, be sure to listen to the entire interview at Maron’s website. The two go into much greater detail about the zombified universe during their conversation.