The Walking Dead continues to expand in new ways.
Not only is Andrew Lincoln returning for Walking Dead TV movies, but Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride have inked multi-year franchise deals that could see them transition to any of the shows/franchises in the Walking Dead universe, per THR:
As AMC officially begins its expansion plans for The Walking Dead, the cable network has signed two key cast members to what sources describe as groundbreaking multiple-year “franchise/universe” deals. Meanwhile, breakout star Danai Gurira is in negotiations with AMC for a similar pact.
Fan favorites Norman Reedus (Daryl) and Melissa McBride (Carol) — who both started with the zombie drama in season one — have signed rich new deals with the cable network. Sources say the pacts will cover three years of the franchise as a whole, meaning if their characters are written off of the flagship and relocated to another property in the Walking Dead franchise — or depart completely — they would continue to get paid.
“The deals that we made for Norman and Melissa are franchise deals. Our deals with Norman and Melissa allow us the flexibility to either move them or use them in more than one place, depending on what seems creatively right to Scott and to his partners,” AMC programming president David Madden tells The Hollywood Reporter.
“We do look at this as a universe where we’re trying to expand into as many different places as the show fits. We think this is a franchise that could live across formats. So, we want to do it carefully; we want to be strategic; we want to try to do it right. But there is a multi-year plan that could include additional series, digital content and specials.”
What do you think about the ever-expanding nature of The Walking Dead?
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