‘Tis the season for blood and gore.
This morning, Variety announced AMC’s plan to run the entirety of its flagship series The Walking Dead. Rife with violence, heart, pain, love, and of course bloodthirsty zombies, The Walking Dead puts you in the post-apocalyptic world as one man tries to band together with others just to stay alive.
Naturally, there is a catch to the 88-hour marathon. Instead of airing them back-to-back, effectively blocking out all other broadcasting for over three days, AMC is opting for a more relaxed “marathon” in light of their traditional Fearfest.
Fearfest is AMC’s annual event and it is marking its ceremonial twentieth year this October. Every year, AMC runs the Hall of Fame of horror from October 13th to the 31st. The usual participants are classics like The Exorcist, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Halloween, but The Walking Dead is no stranger to the element of horror and will serve to perfectly complement Fearfest’s usual crowd.
The entire Season 1 and the first half of season 2 will begin The Walking Dead‘s contribution to the marathon on Sunday, October 16, culminating with a two-hour look back on the series as a whole. The next week will slowly become more and more Walking Dead-ified, airing episodes from 6pm to the early hours of the morning. The marathon will mark its end with the heart-wrenching season 6 finale and segue nicely into the season 7 premiere on October 23 at 9/8c.
The move to include The Walking Dead so heavily in Fearfest almost brings the series full circle. The president of AMC, Charlie Collier, saw the interest in the macabre and greenlit The Walking Dead to satiate the audience past Fearfest. With all the hype from the marathon, audiences will be sure to tune in to see the fate of the gang they know and love.