The Walking Dead Is Giving An Unexpected Character A Spinoff
This Walking Dead character might be getting their own show, and this one is a huge surprise.
This article is more than 2 years old
Seems the reported demise of AMC’s The Walking Dead can be put to rest. True, the series itself is surrounded by walkers and this time there is no secret way out unless you consider all the reported and confirmed spinoffs as its savior. Well, we can now (almost) officially add one more character spinoff to the list. Ezekiel.
THE WALKING DEAD’S EZEKIEL?
You heard it right. King Ezekiel, played wonderfully by Khary Payton, is getting his own series. At least that’s the prevailing wisdom. AMC is already looking toward the future with the continuing of Fear of the Walking Dead. We have The Walking Dead: World Beyond that is set up to run for two seasons and 20 episodes that tell the story of the “first-generation” that has come from the zombie apocalypse. We also now know that the anthology series, Tales of the Walking Dead is in the works. This one is going to tell stories from the zombie apocalypse and introduce new characters and possibly bring back favorites, maybe in prequel form (Hey there Glenn. Hi ya, Shane). There is also the recent announcement of the Daryl and Carol spinoff, The Walking Dead: Daryl and Carol. It looks like The Walking Dead creators are freeing themselves of the original show so they can cash in on telling fan-favorite character stories. So don’t be surprised when you hear that Lauren Cohan will be getting a Maggie spinoff.
EZEKIEL’S FATE
At this point, we don’t know King Ezekiel’s fate. His TV character and comic book character differ widely as far as storytelling goes. For those of you who followed the King in The Walking Dead comics, you would know that his pre-zombie apocalypse self was a zookeeper. He had known his pet tiger Shiva since her birth. As the apocalypse raged on, Ezekiel developed his King persona and befriended Jesus. They eventually met up with Rick Grimes and company to join forces to take down Negan and the Saviors. It was during this time that Ezekiel developed a relationship with Michonne. After the war with the Saviors ended, so did the relationship between Ezekiel and Michonne. Then came Alpha and the Whisperers and during their bloody conflict Ezekiel, along with 11 others, were decapitated by Alpha.
As you can see, for those who follow The Walking Dead TV series, many changes have taken place. Ezekiel never has a relationship with Michonne, less than one kiss they shared, as his attentions were turned toward Carol. Ezekiel never loses his head during the war with the Whisperers, it was his and Carol’s adopted son Henry who lost his head, causing Ezekiel and Carol to drift. Then, Ezekiel realized he had thyroid cancer, something that can’t be dealt with unless he finds the proper treatment.
So, who knows where Ezekiel will end up? Does he survive until the end final finale of The Walking Dead? Does he meet his maker in the form of thyroid cancer or do the producers have a fate worse than cancer waiting?
TOO EARLY TO TELL
We still have 30 more episodes before the ultimate final for The Walking Dead. Maggie has just been brought back to add some more angst and drama to the mix. With her, she brought a mysterious masked person. Ezekiel is off with Eugene, Yumiko, and the newly found Princess are on a hunt to find Stephanie as well as a possible cure for Ezekiel. So, guessing what this new series about Ezekiel could be would be just that, a guess. Could it be a movie or a short series? Would the focus be on how Ezekiel became the King and built his Kingdom or will Ezekiel survive The Walking Dead and move on to other adventures?
It seemed like his fate cards were dealt with the announcement of the Daryl and Carol series, letting fans know a possible reconciliation between Ezekiel and Carol was off the table. The announcement of Tales of the Walking Dead also lent the belief that fans would possibly see King Ezekiel’s story be told in this format, but that doesn’t seem to be the case now. AMC is looking to give Payton and his King Ezekiel a much longer story and it could be a fascinating look at a fan-favorite comic book and TV series character. Stay tuned for more information. Once we get it, we’ll pass it along.
