Sixteen years after The Walking Dead made its debut on AMC, this franchise is still pressing forward. With its flagship show spanning eleven seasons and six spinoffs—including Daryl Dixon, The Ones Who Live, and Dead City—there are still a lot of fans who are deeply invested in this apocalyptic universe. For years, newcomers to the original show have joined the Dead Family by watching it on Netflix.
Meanwhile, the other shows have primarily stuck to streaming on AMC+. Now, according to Deadline, Netflix has inked a $500 million dollar deal for co-exclusive streaming rights to The Walking Dead with AMC Global, and the show will come to AMC+ in 2027. What does this mean for the future of the franchise? We have some thoughts.
The Walking Dead Expands Its Netflix Streaming Reach and Heads to AMC+ in 2027
First, a little more about what this massive deal means. All 371 episodes of the original series and the spinoffs will stream on Netflix in several countries, including the UK, Italy, Australia., New Zealand and other new territories, as well as the US, where it has been since 2011. This deal lasts for five years, taking us through 2031. Twenty years of a show that’s not a Netflix original streaming there is very mind boggling and speaks to the power of The Walking Dead.
“Audiences have discovered and loved The Walking Dead on Netflix for nearly 15 years and the show continues to attract new fans,” said Lori Conkling, Vice President of Licensing at Netflix. “We’re excited to partner with AMC Global Media to continue to expand that access to more audiences around the world and bring the entirety of The Walking Dead Universe to Netflix.”
Sure, there are a lot of fans who are no longer as immersed in its world, especially with Rick Grimes no longer on screen. But we get the feeling that won’t last for long, and that TWD maestro Scott Gimple really does have something up his sleeves in the near future.
Does The Walking Dead‘s 5-Year Netflix and AMC+ Streaming Deal Hint at a Crossover and More Spinoffs?
For the past few years, there has been ongoing speculation and chatter that there will be a The Walking Dead crossover event that brings original characters back together for one last round. Fans finally got to see Rick meet his son and reunite with his wife Michonne and daughter Judith in The Ones Who Live. But, he has yet to reconnect with his old friends Daryl, Carol, and Maggie. (Let’s safely assume he does not care about Negan.) And, we cannot forget that Morgan’s last moments in Fear the Walking Dead was to go to look for Rick with his daughter Mo.
A crossover event could be the right thing to bring fans back into the fold who left long ago. Andrew Lincoln hinted at ongoing conversations about what could happen next for Rick Grimes. And Gimple himself previously hinted that there could be more room to tell stories with foundational characters. “Anything is possible…,” he said to Deadline. “We’re focused on this one right now. But this one came together in a really amazing way, where there were all sorts of plans. And then the world changed and we altered those plans.”
Additionally, Gimple also said that he did have dreams of merging the spinoffs together. “I do have dreams of merging this all together, and I have laid little breadcrumbs toward that, but you never know exactly when and how [it will come together], because of a variety of reasons,” he told TVLine.
Timelines, New Fans, and Potential New Walking Dead Content
That interview was two years ago and we are seemingly coming to the finish line for Dead City, which is currently airing its third season and initially had a planned four season arc (a season that has yet to be confirmed). Timeline wise, that show is running ahead of Daryl Dixon but with this universe’s tendency to do time jumps, it will not be too hard to bring things back in alignment in Daryl Dixon’s fourth and final season, which airs in 2027. As that show confirms, there are many threats out there that could descend upon Virginia and cause them to come together Avengers style.
Bringing The Walking Dead to AMC+ and extending its time on Netflix with this $500 million dollar deal seems to hint at more to come from this franchise. It gives fans new and old more avenues to watch everything in this universe to prepare for what’s next, much like we do with Marvel.
Crossover thoughts aside, there’s always room for new anthologies in the vein of Tales of the Walking Dead, an animated series, or another live-action limited series or film that takes us to another part of the world. The deal for now is for the current and previous spinoffs, but it is not impossible that there’s room in that agreement for future shows, too. No matter what, a massive streaming deal to have The Walking Dead on Netflix and AMC+ suggests that all the walkers aren’t quite ready to be put down yet.
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