AMC CEO Reveals Rules For Managing The Walking Dead Franchise

While promoting AMC's Weiner documentary (chronicling the difficult Mayoral campaign of Anthony Weiner), AMC Networks CEO Josh Sapan also spent plenty of time talking about their massive hit, The Walking Dead. Specifically, he talked about how to make sure the series, now a franchise with spin-off Fear the Walking Dead, doesn't burn out its audiences.

"We think about this a lot. There really is a question of how much and when, how fast... how to relate to fans when the shows are not on the air?" Sapan said of keeping it front-and-center but also sparse enough to keep fans coming back.

"Never exhaust your welcome, never ever compromise creative storytelling and character, don't underfund it, don't ever think people don't think an awful lot about it" are Sapan's primary rules for managing a franchise, he said.

The Walking Dead has remained a ratings juggernaut, though its companion series Fear the Walking Dead hasn't been quite as well-received, but still has posted an extremely healthy 2.0 rating every week its been on the air except last week. The season will be split this year, as Preacher, another MA-rated comicbook adaptation on AMC will debut to keep the comics love alive nearly all year around.

Sapan also said they're exploring all "multichannel video" delivery services - AMC is already on Sony PlayStation Vue and Sling TV in addition to cable and satellite TV providers.

Fear the Walking Dead mid-season finale airs Sunday May 22, 2016 at 9pm on AMC. The Walking Dead returns this fall.

h/t THR

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