Melissa McBride will co-star in the second season of the “Walking Dead” spinoff series “Daryl Dixon,” marking a return to a show she exited just before production began. McBride plays Carol Peletier in the “Walking Dead” universe and will be making her way over to Norman Reedus’ sequel series for Season 2.
McBride’s casting was announced at New York Comic-Con on Thursday.
The actress makes an appearance in the upcoming season finale of “Daryl Dixon” and will be a series regular in the second season.
“I’ve known there was much more to be told of Carol’s story as I felt her so unsettled when we last saw her, as she watched her best friend, Daryl, ride away,” McBride said in a statement. “Apart or (hopefully!) together, their stories run deep, and I’m so excited to continue Carol’s journey here. This team of storytellers have done amazing work to land these two established characters in an entirely new world to them, and I’m loving the discoveries!”
The actress was originally set to join Reedus in the continuation of the franchise following the conclusion of the flagship series, but backed out in April 2022. Formally, it was announced that the relocation to Europe to shoot the show was “logistically untenable” for McBride, but the door was always left open for her to change her mind.
“The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon” Season 2, titled “The Book of Carol,” is already in production in France, the setting of the spin-off series that saw Reedus’ fan-favorite character cross the Atlantic. A 2024 premiere date on AMC is planned.
The cast for “Daryl Dixon” Season 2 includes Clémence Poésy, Louis Puech Scigliuzzi, Laika Blanc Francard, Anne Charrier, Romain Levi and Eriq Ebouaney and the show is executive produced by showrunner David Zabel, Scott M. Gimple, Reedus, McBride, Greg Nicotero, Angela Kang, Brian Bockrath, Daniel Percival, Jason Richman and Steve Squillante.