‘The Walking Dead’ Latest News, Update: New Spin-off in the Works Despite Drop in Ratings, Negan as Lead?

There is no denying that “The Walking Dead” has fallen compared to its heyday, with the most recent season seeing a major dip in viewer numbers; the lowest since the first season of the show. Even so, it would appear that the folks over at AMC still believe in the little zombie survival show that could. This is evidenced by the fact that there is yet another spin-off in the works. Will Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) be the lead character?

As The Wrap reports, it was revealed by AMC Networks COO Ed Carroll recently that there will be a new spinoff based on “The Walking Dead” universe. There are scarcely any details on the new project and the executives are not willing to talk specifics. Even so, there is every possibility that it could feature old faces from the original show.

“That is in active development,” Carroll said. “We’re not yet at a stage where we’ll be announcing its plans to premiere. But we have hired creative people that have pitched story outlines. We feel very good about the development of that series.”

This announcement was made during the Q4 conference call that the executives hosted with reporters present. When the matter of the falling ratings for “The Walking Dead” was brought up, it was pointed out that even with the dip in numbers, the show is still doing quite well.

As for what the new “The Walking Dead” spinoff is going to be about, it is a bit difficult to tell with the nature of the show being what it is. However, with Negan playing a much smaller role in “The Walking Dead” Season 9, it stands to reason that the showrunners might want to do something with him. Putting someone like Jeffrey Dean Morgan in a starring role as a charismatic, bat-wielding psychopath seems promising.