Considering The Walking Dead is the biggest scripted series on television in terms of overall key demographics and DVR audience, it’s no surprise AMC is hard at work at the moment on a spin-off to their hit zombie drama. The series is currently being written by Dave Erickson and Robert Kirkman, but there is little else known about the new series beyond some of the early casting that includes Cliff Curtis, Frank Dillane and Alycia Debnam, and its codename of Cobalt. However, as of today, we can now report where the series is going to be set. If it’s true, it could be a place that takes the franchise in a whole new direction — literally.
According to TV Line, The Walking Dead’s forthcoming companion series is set to take place in Los Angeles, California, which seemingly confirms the companion series will take the franchise out of the backwoods and middle-America settings of the original series.
It’s an interesting decision given that part of The Walking Dead’s success has to do with its setting. By putting itself in America’s heartland rather than a coastal city, it allowed the show to reflect most of the country back on to itself. Daryl, Rick, Michonne — they all come across as average, middle class folks that get put into an unimaginable scenario that they must fight through to survive. It will be very interesting to see the ways the new show will use its Los Angeles setting to express the dire nature of the zombie apocalypse should it go to series (spoiler alert: it will).
What do you think of The Walking Dead’s new location? Let us know in the comments below.
Disappointed. There is already too much film and TV lazily set in L.A. I was hoping for Minneapolis or something fresh. And Georgia is not “the Heartland.” Georgia is the South. They do not overlap, except maybe in Missouri.
We live outside L.A. and believe me zombies are already alive and thriving here, kinda disappointed with the new location was hoping for somwhere more original
If successful then we will see more spin-offs. Hopefully we get The Walking Dead: Heartland of America. The setting is middle of the summer in tornado alley. A community fun-day picnic day is happening in a small town, but suddenly a storm sweeps in. The tornado hits the town so quickly they don’t have time to react. Zombi-nado!
Wondering if it’ll actually be LA as LA, or Somewhere In Canada as LA. In any event, I’m looking forward to a zombie hipster barista.
A zombie based show can’t take place in any region that experiences winter. Zombies don’t produce enough heat (no pumping blood) they would freeze! Wouldn’t make for much of a show.
I look forward to the characters getting to know each other and coming to the realization that one of them used to be a huge celebrity, maybe an action movie star who was pretty close to the characters he/she played on the big screen or the sex-pot glam girl/guy who turns out to be a badass.
I was hoping northeast to see how the winters would toll on people and walkers alike, but maybe slash will do a cameo as suggested on the talking dead.
Walking Dead: Los Angeles. Soon to be followed by Walking Dead: Miami and Walking Dead: SZU
I’m slightly confused. The casting for this spin-off was taking place in PA. That’s a bit strange to have the two take place completely cross-country
I always thought Detroit or Chicago would be good. Detroit especially because the place is sort of already falling apart. But either for the fact that they’d not only have to battle zombies and each other, but god awful winter. Winter would be an excellent wrench to throw in the gears. Plus, frozen zombies.
I want Ice Zombies. I don’t care where they are – I want Ice Zombies. *goes off to google “Most populated city within Arctic circle”*
Gary maybe you should watch Game of Thrones
Ahh ha! You just figured out how to survivor the zombies. “Frozen zombies” just live in cold climates! Zombies aren’t pumping blood to stay warm. They would freezeand become immobilized. Rendering them bite less. On the other hand it wouldn’t make for a good show. They already have one, it’s called living in Alaska
Ehhhhh this seems so lazy on their part. LA? Really? The Georgia landscape became another character in and of itself. LA? So we have a bunch of hollywood douches running around living and dying. We see that everyday anyway. Also this smells like a gift to LA/Cali for the new tax incentives to keep productions close to home. We have an entire country full of amazing locations and we’re stuck seeing LA. boooo
LA is huge. Imagine zombies in KoreaTown, Thai Town, Hollywood, East LA, South Central. So many varied locations.
Poor Choice why not Pittsburgh everything in NYC or LA…. maybe Fort lauderdale
Too many Shows in NYC & LA why not Pittsburgh or Philadeplhia
My questions are all about the timeline.
They said it will start at the beginning. So the stuff we missed when rick was in the coma. We can see how it starts. And they said the characters will be families. A single mom. A dad and his kids etc
Atlanta, GA is in the South… Its advantage as a setting is that it can be at once urban and rural. L.A. will be interesting, as the high population density (in the South, we often look at L.A. traffic as an extension of the Walking Dead franchise) should present new challenges and a new dynamic.
Maybe they will know how to dig a big hole block them selves off with moats and spiked trenches. because they are somewhat smarter
Why not just live on a boat in the marina, anchored just off the dock?
This really comes across as completely uninspired. I was hoping for an area that would allow for something really unique. Something international. The producers likely chose L.A. as a location for the spin-off to help keep costs low. As always the bottom line comes before creativity.
Agreed!!
Well, it does if you want to pump dollars into the show as opposed to housing actors and crew.
So… LA doesn’t have “average, middle class” people? While the setting does impact the storyline of TWD, I believe it is the character arcs that keep viewers coming back; the writing is about the people, their hearts in the midst of dire circumstance. As long as that remains intact, they can put the spin-off anywhere.
I think this will work out fine. It’s not as if Georgia is a character. In fact, outside of Atlanta, would anyone know where the hell it was set if they didn’t keep mentioning it?
Incidentally, Georgia is neither middle America nor is it the “heartland”. When people use those phrases, they usually mean somewhere centralized, in the plains usually. Kansas or Iowa, etc…
NYC and LA types see anything outside those two metro areas as flyover country. No sense of actual region to the show — somehow they managed to find a pocket of Georgia where not a single soul has a southern accent.
AWESOME!! Now if only Bill Murray would do a cameo.
Except that Bill Murray doesn’t live in California. He (primarily) lives in South Carolina. He’s a pretty common fixture in my town…part owner of the local minor league baseball team, shows up at random parties, well-known customer at the local big box home improvement store.