The Walking Dead Show Creator Robert Kirkman Would Make If He Got The Rights Back

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Just like any good zombie, "The Walking Dead" won't stay down. Since the debut of "The Walking Dead" comic (written by Robert Kirkman, drawn by Tony Moore and later Charlie Adlard) in 2003, it's become one of the biggest non-superhero comics out there, and the TV adaptation that launched on AMC in 2010 took that popularity even higher. Though "The Walking Dead" ended its 11-season, 177-episode run in 2022, it lives on in spin-offs such as "Dead City" and "Daryl Dixon."

Image Comics is also currently reprinting original black-and-white "Walking Dead" comics (which wrapped in 2019) in full color and with new cover art as "The Walking Dead Deluxe." The new issues include all-new letters columns in the back of the books, where the creators answer questions from readers who wrote in. In "The Walking Dead Deluxe" #85, Noel Julian from Puerto Rico wrote in asking: 

"I've been thinking about how great the INVINCIBLE show is and it got me thinking ... is it possible that we ever get a 'Walking Dead' animated show? It would be so cool to see the comic in motion, also new voices and interpretations of the characters."

Kirkman's answer? "I'd love to see it happen someday, but I don't think it'll be possible until I get the rights back from AMC." 

AMC purchased the rights to adapt "The Walking Dead" back in 2009 in what was called one of the network's largest ever development deals at the time.

Creative rights in comics are a hotbed for controversy. Comics are generally a collaborative medium, which can lead to ugly disputes over who deserves credit for what, especially when corporate publishers want as much of the pie as possible. Kirkman, Gale Anne Hurd, and other executive producers on "The Walking Dead" sued AMC in 2022 for profits they claimed to be entitled to.

Kirkman himself has also been sued in the past by Tony Moore, who claimed that as a co-creator of "The Walking Dead" he was entitled to as many as half the proceeds of the comic. "Invincible" colorist William Crabtree has also sued Kirkman, contesting that he deserved a co-creator credit on that series. (Both suits were settled outside of court.)

The long and short of this situation is that Kirkman retains ownership over his original "Walking Dead" comics, but AMC likely has a hold on any right to make a television adaptation of the comics. If this is one of those "make an adaptation by X date or the lose the rights" (i.e. Sony Pictures' ownership of the Spider-Man film rights), then the rights probably won't revert any time soon. It doesn't make much financial sense for AMC to sell the rights (since they're making money off the TV shows), nor for Kirkman to outright buy them back. He's made plenty off of "The Walking Dead" TV show too, but even that may not be enough to foot AMC's asking price.

Still, an animated "The Walking Dead" series has to get fans' imaginations ticking.

AMC's "The Walking Dead" makes a lot of changes from Kirkman's original story. Kirkman was (at least publicly) fine with these changes, viewing the TV series as a separate story in a new medium. But that's also why many fans hold out hope for an animated "Walking Dead" show. They want a more literal adaptation of the comic, both in narrative and style.

The ongoing "Invincible" TV series is definitely lighting the fire of this too. When I spoke to Kirkman and "Invincible" artist Ryan Ottley for their new "Invincible Universe: Battle Beast" series, they both said it was gratifying to see comic scenes they made together on "Invincible" be animated. 

There are also some changes to rectify, like the "The Walking Dead" TV series' poor handling of Andrea (Laurie Holden). But at the same time, there are some things the show does better than the comic. The character of Shane (Jon Bernthal), who dies in issue #6 of the comic, lasted longer in the show and was much better fleshed out as a result. But would a hypothetical animated "Walking Dead" have to repeat the mistake of killing Shane early, because that's what the comic did? Or would it also keep him alive longer and therefore not be the exact adaptation some fans want.

"The Walking Dead" TV series also introduced several original characters totally absent from the comics. Can you really do a "Walking Dead" TV series without Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus)? Other characters are unrecognizable between the two mediums; compare the fragile Carol in the comics, who dies in a suicide-by-zombie in issue #42, to the hardened and fan-favorite Carol (Melissa McBride) in the TV series.

Then there are production questions. Would an animated "Walking Dead" TV series bring back actors from the live-action series to reprise their roles? Or would it cast a whole new ensemble to show it's a different beast? Would the animation be in black-and-white like the comics? (Compare Adult Swim's not-so-successful "Uzumaki" anime.)

These aren't insurmountable challenges, of course. But it does show that making an animated "Walking Dead" series would be more complicated than just "let's faithfully adapt the comic" — and not just due to AMC holding onto the series rights.