After a down year, the zombie spin-off is having a resurgent season 6.
There were complaints about the plot and pacing.
Critics gave the season only a 55% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Ryan Green/AMC
The score from fans was even worse at 43%.
So how did showrunners Ian Goldberg and Andrew Chambliss along withWalking Deadchief content officerScott M. Gimple do it?
And that has led to a boldness of action that has proved irresistible.
EW spoke to Goldberg and Chambliss aboutFear the Walking Dead’s season 6 renaissance.
ENTERTAINMENT WEKELY: This season has been one of the best seasons of anyWalking Deadshow ever.
And I want to start by talking aboutlastseason.
Ryan Green/AMC
And we certainly did that between seasons 5 and 6.
And where it starts from is the emotional stories.
Season 5 was an unusually bright and optimistic and kind of benevolent vibe that was happening between our characters.
They were uniting behind this shared philosophy of helping people out in the world.
They were sort of masters of their own domain.
It just wouldn’t have felt as earned.
Nothing’s happening."
Do you see that same relationship here between seasons 5 and 6?
And we’re continuing to have discussions about how it will continue into the future.
And it really is kind of mapping out these arcs that go across seasons.
Otherwise, I think we run in danger of repeating ourselves or sending characters into familiar territory.
That’s always fantastic to hear.
We want the fans to love the show.
But at the end of the day, we are proud of all of them.
They’re all very different.
Season 4 is very different than season 5, is very different than season 6.
And we thought all of this was going to air late spring, early summer.
Tell me about handling that balancing act.
You’ll be front and center.
You’re nodding your head, Ian.
I was wondering about those discussions you guys have with the actors.
And when their number is called, it’s batter-up time."
But on the other hand, they have to sit back more as well.
The spotlight’s on someone else, maybe they don’t all like that.
GOLDBERG:We’re fortunate in the sense that everybody has really warmed to it and taken to it.
And I was nodding because Andrew’s talking about change within episodes.
That’s what’s so exciting to us.
You really are telling a complete journey that still has a cumulative effect.
So let’s follow up on that.
CHAMBLISS: For us, the episode ideas kind of always start with the character story.
And then it’s looking at that and finding the kind of high concept hook that will complement it.
And that’s how we ended up marrying it with the Dorie character story and got episode 604.
GOLDBERG:I think we could say that’s in the cards.
We’ve really seen Strand return to his ruthless ways of old.
I think that’s a cool way to crystallize it.
But the interesting thing for us with Strand is he’s a bit of an enigma.
you’re free to’t entirely wrap your arms around what’s motivating him at any time.
And he’s damaging his relationships, including one with Alicia, which we saw in episode 602.
And I think the thing that we’re most interested in is what’s the ultimate cost there?
Is he going to be able to do the good that he thinks he can do?
And it only gets explored more with Strand as the season progresses.
And she’s pregnant, and he’s trying to help her… but he gets bit and dies.
Now you have John and June relatively freshly married… they split up.
What’s going on?
Why do you guys hate love?
CHAMBLISS:[Laughs]I don’t know.
Maybe you should ask my wife.
