First Look at AMC's WALKING DEAD Spin-Off, Which Was Just Picked Up For 2 Seasons

We knew that AMC was developing a spin-off companion series to its smash hit The Walking Dead that would fill in some of the gaps of what happened while Rick was in a coma, but now we know that the network is serious about giving the show the time it needs to fully develop: Deadline says that they have given a full two season pickup to the Los Angeles-set spin-off, similar to how they gave Better Call Saul a two season pickup before the first episode even aired. The show is still officially untitled, though rumor has it the series will be called Fear the Walking Dead.

The first season of the new show will be made up of six one-hour episodes and will air sometime during late summer of this year, possibly leading up to the new season of The Walking Dead. Season 2 is expected to consist of a higher number of episodes, and those will debut sometime in 2016. Cliff Curtis (Live Free or Die Hard, The Fountain, Sunshine), Kim Dickens (Gone Girl, Deadwood, House of Cards), Frank Dillane (Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, In the Heart of the Sea), and Alycia Debnam Carey (Into The Storm) are starring in the show, while Dave Erickson, who co-created the show and co-wrote the pilot with Robert Kirkman, is an executive producer and showrunner.

AMC president Charlie Collier had this to say:

“We take incredibly seriously the notion of building a satisfying companion series to the number one show on television. From the beginning of The Walking Dead on AMC, we’ve been asked questions about what was going on in other parts of the zombie apocalypse, and what it looked like as the world really did ‘turn.’ Through this new series, we’re going to find out. We respectfully follow the request of Monty Python as we bring out (the latest of) our Dead.”

What do you think? Looking forward to this show?