The Walking Dead season 2 has got off to a record-breaking start, it's been revealed...
Whilst us Brits have to wait until Friday night to see the season two premiere of The Walking Dead, when it airs on FX, US audiences (including our own Ron Hogan) got to watch it on Sunday night. And, as it turns out, lots of people did just that. A record number tuned in to see how things work out for Rick and co following the finale of season one.
This must be hugely vindicating for all involved particularly in the face of the problems leading up to the filming of the series, and the fact that the show also suffered from budget cuts. These problems clearly didn’t deter audiences, as the premiere drew a total of 7.3 million total viewers for the 9pm slot with 11 million total viewers when including repeat showings at 10.30pm and 12.30am on the night.
AMC president Charlie Colliers said “The Walking Dead is one of those rare television programs that reaches both a core genre fan as well as broad audiences simply looking for a great, character-based story. That The Walking Dead is now the most watched drama in the history of basic cable is staggering, just like our zombies.”
A thirteen episode second series was commissioned following the success of the six episode first season that aired last year. The show took Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard’s comic book series as a source of inspiration, following the opening very closely, but then took events in a slightly different direction from the source material. There have been some critics that it has differed too much, but as a fan of the comics, I, for one, am pleased that the TV series is establishing its own identity and exploring new ground.
You can find Ron’s review of the opening episode here.
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