The Walking Dead Aftershow Talking Dead Returning Live in Studio After 17 Months

Talking Dead lives again — live. AMC's long-running Walking Dead aftershow hosted by Chris Hardwick returns on August 15 with the previously revealed Walking Dead Season 11 Preview Special, the first episode of Talking Dead to air live and in-studio since March 2020. AMC announces Talking Dead will resume weekly live shows to follow new episodes from the Final Season of The Walking Dead on Sundays, beginning with the two-part season premiere "Acheron: Part I" and "Acheron: Part II" on August 22. The August 15 return marks the first live episode of Talking Dead in 525 days, or 17 months.

The popular AMC aftershow went dark temporarily last year amid the burgeoning pandemic, canceling a planned March 15 in-studio show with former Walking Dead star Tom Payne and two surprise cast members from the Season 10 episode "Walk With Us." Talking Dead returned the following week with the first of 18 virtual edition episodes featuring cast and crew from AMC's three Walking Dead shows appearing remotely.

Talking Dead also aired multiple pre-recorded virtual specials during its hiatus from live studio shows, including The Walking Dead Universe Preview Special in September 2020 and the first-ever Walking Dead Holiday Special, a streaming exclusive released on AMC+ in December.

Ready for the beginning of the end? #TWD Season 11 premieres on AMC August 22nd and Talking Dead returns to the studio LIVE right after! Be part of this epic return and send us your questions for the cast using #TalkingDead and YOURS could be answered LIVE on air! pic.twitter.com/FrpPy8kzkV

— Talking Dead (@AMCTalkingDead) July 3, 2021

Guests for the live Walking Dead Season 11 Preview Special are TBA. Past preview specials featured an ensemble of series stars alongside showrunner Angela Kang and executive producer Scott Gimple, who traditionally reveal exclusive intel about the upcoming season.

Guests for the live episode of Talking Dead to follow the two-part Season 11 premiere are also TBA, but the official synopsis for "Acheron" Parts I and II reveals prominent roles for Daryl (Norman Reedus), Maggie (Lauren Cohan), and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) when a violent storm forces the survivors underground into a zombie-filled subway tunnel.

HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT ALERT!!! #TalkingDead is returning to the studio LIVE! Join us for this momentous occasion August 15th for #TWD Season 11 Preview Special and come back every Sunday for LIVE shows all season long when TWD returns August 22nd. (Did we mention we’re LIVE?) pic.twitter.com/I6ZnQBZAxs

— Talking Dead (@AMCTalkingDead) July 2, 2021

Talking Dead returns with The Walking Dead Season 11 Preview Special live and in-studio on Sunday, August 15. Live episodes of Talking Dead will air following new episodes of The Walking Dead: The Final Season Part I starting Sunday, August 22, on AMC.

Follow the author @CameronBonomolo on Twitter for all things The Walking Dead Universe.