Fear The Walking Dead Showrunner Addresses Major Crossover Theory

07/08/2017 11:30 am EDT

Early on in Fear the Walking Dead's third season, Madison Clark reminded fans she is from Alabama when her southern accent came out.

The accent matches that of Rick Grimes and the rest of his gang on Fear the Walking Dead's older sibling series The Walking Dead. As a result, the Internet did what the Internet does best and speculated some wild theories regarding possible connections between the Kim Dickens-acted Madison Clark and Rick Grimes or other characters on the east coast show.

Many suspected Madison may have been a sibling, cousin, or other relative to Rick Grimes or another character from The Walking Dead. Now, though, this connection has been firmly ruled out by Fear the Walking Dead showrunner Dave Erickson through an exclusive interview with ComicBook.com.

"I've heard that theory, and I actually think I teased it in my first Talking Dead appearance, which was this notion that I found it interesting," Erickson said. "You can hear her accent. I mean, Kim [Dickens is] from Alabama. And you can hear her accent come through every so often. And the character, as we come to learn, is also from Alabama. So I can only speak for myself and say she's not related to Rick or anybody else on the other show. And the fact that she's from the south is really just a coincidence."

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The connection between the characters of The Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead being on a familial level always seemed a little farfetched to the more logical fans. However, the possibility of Madison having crossed paths with the likes of Daryl Dixon or his brother Merle prior to the world falling about remains.

Still, Fear the Walking Dead has no plans to crossover with The Walking Dead at the moment and that likely won't change any time soon. With The Walking Dead's showrunner Scott Gimple joining Fear the Walking Dead as an executive producer for the show's fourth season, there is plenty of room for speculation, but all parties involved with the series have frequently shut down such a notion.

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Fear the Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9 pm ET on AMC. The Walking Dead will return for its eighth season in October with a trailer coming in July at San Diego Comic Con. For complete coverage and insider info all season long, follow @BrandonDavisBD on Twitter.

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