Norman Reedus Says His Walking Dead Spinoff Is Much Better Than The Original Series
It’s not uncommon for an artist or actor to be the most enthusiastic about the project that they’re currently working on, and Norman Reedus feels exactly this way about The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, according to Entertainment Weekly.
I feel like we’re not cranking it out for numbers on a Sunday night. We’re making art, and there’s moving dialogue. It’s a different animal and it’s beautiful, it’s touching, and it’s sort of amazing to look at and listen to and watch and feel.”
Norman Reedus
And after portraying the same character for 11 seasons on the original Walking Dead series, it goes without question that the man behind Daryl Dixon is excited to be working on something new. But even though he thinks the new series has potential to be a superior show, he doesn’t necessarily speak ill of his past work.
When it comes to long-running series, one could liken this new Walking Dead spinoff to Kelsey Grammer’s highly successful Cheers spinoff, Frasier. Though Norman Reedus is still portraying the same character that he’s developed over 11 seasons, he is well aware of the fact that it’s time for a new setting, as well as a new means of storytelling to keep things interesting.
Commenting on why the new series appeals to him so much artistically, Reedus suggested that The Walking Dead was not immune to falling into the trap of succumbing to a tried-and-true formula, but the new series will take a different approach, and have a clean slate to work with.
Elaborating on this sentiment, Norman Reedus stated that he no longer feels the pressure to participate in TV’s biggest show for prime-time ratings on a Sunday night, but is rather able to further explore his character, and with a little more nuance that he felt was lacking from the original series.
“I think with doing a show as long as The Walking Dead for that many years, whether you know it or not, you fall into a rhythm of repeating things that work. I found myself saying some of the same lines over and over, and did all the other sorts of storylines that we had done before, maybe with another character or whatever. Now, we’re not following anything.”
Norman Reedus
He went on to explain that while The Walking Dead was a much larger machine that he was a part of, having the lead role in Daryl Dixon is a little more personal, and allows him to continue to develop his character as he faces new challenges while still taking pages from the Walking Dead playbook.
The premise for Daryl Dixon is simple, but leaves a lot of room for a new kind of world-building in the overall Walking Dead canon. Norman Reedus’ Daryl Dixon washes ashore in France, but does not recall how he arrived there. Though his primary mission is to piece together the events leading up to his mysterious arrival and find his way back home, he’s conflicted by his desire to help those around him who are in immediate need of help.
In regard to the continuity of the new Norman Reedus starring series, we’re not quite sure about where the new series will fall as of this writing. Knowing that Daryl Dixon takes place after the events that took place in the original series, we have reason to believe that some of the story telling could at some point cross over with the other highly anticipated Walking Dead spinoff, Dead City.
Though Dead City takes place in Manhattan, and Daryl Dixon takes place in France, we can’t help but wonder why the latter was renewed for a second season before even seeing its premiere.
Though your guess is as good as ours, it’s reasonable to assume that a second season of Norman Reedus’ Daryl Dixon is going to eventually share continuity with Dead City. But if this doesn’t end up being the case, we can’t be mad that one of our favorite characters from The Walking Dead is getting room to grow as he navigates through the post-apocalyptic wasteland.
When To Watch The Daryl Dixon Spinoff
The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon is slated for a September 10 release on AMC, and we’re beyond excited to see where Norman Reedus takes us next.
