Daryl, Rick, Negan, Maggie, Carol, the list goes on and on… names so iconic that without ever mentioning a last name, we know you’re tracking and thinking of the same thing we are: AMC’s The Walking Dead.
The series, inspired by the series of comic books of the same name, premiered on Oct. 31, 2010, and fans were immediately enamored with the story about walkers, the undead, and a sheriff who woke up from a coma to find himself in a familiar place that had suddenly turned into something unlike anything he’d ever experienced. No longer was he simply in a hospital in his hometown; he woke up in an empty room, in a vacant building, with seemingly unalive and somehow undead people in various states of decomposition all around him.
Needless to say, it was quite a shock to the system of Rick Grimes, and we needed to know what his next moves would look like. From there, an entire universe was born, but as we said before, it is rooted in a comic series that first drew fans in with issue 1, released on Oct. 8, 2003. Robert Kirkman’s story would change the pop culture realm as we knew it, ensuring that we cared deeply about a group of survivors trying to make sense of a world that suddenly didn’t.
So when The Walking Dead‘s umbrella account posted to X (Twitter) today, fans immediately took note, waiting with bated breath to find out what would follow the four-letter, one-word, and picture message.
Soon, it promises, with a snap of a clapperboard, the words written on it “The Walking Dead 20th,” with production starting September 26. Of course, fans of the comic are sure it’s related to the story, and as the 20th anniversary is just over the horizon; we have to admit we agree; buy what’s with the clapperboard?
Some fans hope it’s a dual thing, a celebration of the comic with some of the actors and actresses involved, and while the WGA Strike is still ongoing, with an anniversary this big, it’s entirely possible that they would have filmed segments months in advance.
This Walking Dead fan figured it all out pretty quickly, and they have a thought/wish of their own to go alongside what they believe the announcement will be.
This fan isn’t sure what it is, but as a new viewer of TWD, they’re excited.
This eagle-eyed fan believes they see the word Negan under one of the silver spots at the bottom, and another one said they feel like the other word says Daryl. Color us intrigued!
Someone else responded and said they believe it actually says day and night, and while that might make sense, we’re holding out hope that Daryl and Negan are involved somehow. As fans of the comics and the series are well aware, Daryl’s character was written specifically for Norman Reedus, so his arc isn’t a piece of the comic book realm.
Reedus impressed everyone involved so much that they created Daryl Dixon specifically for the actor, and we can’t imagine The Walking Dead‘s universe without him.
So as fans prepare to celebrate 20 years of the comics that started it all, we’re also nearing the 13th anniversary of the series that breathed new life into the emotional, iconic, and heartwarming storylines, and no matter what the clapperboard is teasing, we’re ready for it. While there are certainly some lines in the show that tug on the heartstrings of fans everywhere, we’re reflecting on one of our favorites from the late Scott Wilson and Hershel Greene:
“You step outside, you risk your life. You take a drink of water, you risk your life. And nowadays you breathe, and you risk your life. Every moment now you don’t have a choice. The only thing you can choose is what you’re risking it for. Now I can make these people feel better and hang on a little bit longer. I can save lives. That’s reason enough to risk mine. And you know that.
Here’s to 20 years of one of the most iconic pieces of pop culture we’ve ever known; we’re grateful for it.