AMC's CEO Says That THE WALKING DEAD Could Live On For Decades

The Walking Dead series has been a wild and interesting ride. For the most part, it's been a great show, but it's definitely had some bumps in the road on its journey. The last episode saw a big ratings drop, but that isn't worrying AMC CEO Josh Sapan. During a conference call with Wall Street analysts (via Deadline), he said the zombie drama has "a good shot to remain a top performer for many more years, if not decades." He went on to say:

“The use of the word ‘franchise,’ we don’t take lightly. It’s not a sloppy or casual word. We’ve studied the best. Some have been around 30, 40, 50 years. We have a chance for a lot of life in the franchise.”

He goes on to say that the franchise is “in great shape and the people who are managing that great shape are motivated.” This franchise goes beyond the series and also spills into gaming, merchandising, virtual reality, and other forms of entertainment that they want to explore.

A couple years ago it was reported that there was no end in sight for The Walking Dead series, and it looks like that is still the case today. President of original programming and development at AMC, Joel Stillerman, had this to say at the time:

"I will tell you we are not actively talking about the end of ‘The Walking Dead.’ We’re talking about how to keep this No. 1 show on television feeling as fresh as it does in season six. As a brand, we’re very sensitive to making sure that every aspect of it feels fresh and original, and that it’s not treated in any way that’s derivative or taken for granted. Our planning is current and future-focused, and it is not focused on the end at this time."

If they can keep things fresh and fans interested in continuing to watch the series, there's no doubt it will live on for as long as they want it to. If fans start to get bored with it, though, those ratings will continue to drop. 

So far, this season has been solid. We're only a couple of episodes in, but the story seems like it's on a good track and I'm curious to see how the rest of the season plays out. It will be interesting to see how long this series actually goes before it finally comes to an end.

Do you think the series can and will go on for decades to come?