The Walking Dead Stars Address Season 11 Filming Delay (Exclusive)

The Walking Dead stars are “super f—ing ready” to return to work after a planned mid-spring shooting start on Season 11 of the zombie drama was indefinitely postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic, which consequently delayed the Season 10 finale from April until October 2020. In addition to the coming season finale, “A Certain Doom,” and the 16-episode eleventh season not expected to reach viewers until late 2021, showrunner Angela Kang on Friday announced cast members will return to work for six “extra” episodes of The Walking Dead Season 10 as part of an extended season to air in early 2021.

“I don’t think anybody knows the ‘hows’ yet, I think it’s an ongoing conversation that’s being constantly had,” Negan actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan told ComicBook.com‘s Brandon Davis about safely returning to work on future episodes of The Walking Dead. “But I bet you everyone you’re talking to right now is super f—ing ready to go to work.”

That includes co-stars Norman Reedus, Khary Payton, Ross Marquand, and recent Season 10 addition Paola Lázaro, who joined us for Comic Book at Comic-Con.

“We’re all dying, we’re all dying to go to work. It’s just a matter of [safety],” added Payton, whose King Ezekiel plays a key role in the tenth season finale. “I don’t know if it’s gonna be like that NBA bubble and we’re literally gonna be on bunk beds, just grabbing a cot.”

“I have no idea how we’re going to do this,” he added, “but we’re all dying to get back.”

Walking Dead chief content officer and former showrunner Scott Gimple told ComicBook.com AMC Networks is engaged in “constant conversation” about safely starting physical work on the new season as well as the feature film franchise starring Andrew Lincoln’s Rick Grimes.

“I mean, things that seemed very true a month ago are now not true. And by next month the situation could change as well,” Gimple said. “You know, we are gonna have all the protocols that are necessary and then some, and in some ways we are bending story around it as a hedge. And then in other ways, we’ll have some stories that we’re hoping to do our typical way. And then you expand this out.”

Referring to the respective filming locations of the three Walking Dead shows — Texas for spinoff Fear the Walking Dead, Virginia for two-season event series The Walking Dead: World Beyond, and Georgia for the flagship series — Gimple noted AMC is paying close attention to potential reopenings or closures across the three states.

“Different conditions on different schedules and we’re just rolling with it,” Gimple said. “We’re listening to experts and we’re making all sorts of contingency plans and we’re in just this constant contact.”

The Walking Dead Season 10 finale premieres Sunday, October 4 on AMC. For all things TWD, follow the author @CameronBonomolo on Twitter.