Walking Dead Names New Boss

Just a couple days ago, Frank Darabont, showrunner for AMC’s hit shot The Walking Dead, stepped down from his position on the show and a replacement has already been found. Glen Mazzara will take over as showrunner for the rest of the season. This decision was an obvious one to make. Mazzara wrote the episode “Wildfire” in the first season and was brought on full time for Season 2, being described by Darabont as his “head writer.”

Even with the position filled, there are still a lot of questions to be asked about the future of The Walking Dead. With the show already well in to filming the second season, will Mazzara change the direction the show is headed? Whatever Darabont was planning might not be what Mazzara wants to do, and if it isn’t will it be wildly different and not unappealing? And to what capacity will Darabont be around? He is still under contract for two years, so he’s not gone. Will he have a lot of say still?

I’m not too worried about the future of The Walking Dead. I am worried, but Mazzara hasn’t given me a reason to be overly afraid. Right now, I’m leaning towards hoping the show sticks to Darabont’s original plan for the season. I was digging his ideas in the first season and seeing what’s been shot so far has left me so excited for the premiere. More likely than not, the show will stick rock our socks off and deliver compelling storytelling with more zombies than you can shake a baseball bat at.