Originally posted Saturday, October 5, 2019 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog
AMC still believes there is plenty of life left in "The Walking Dead," officially announcing today at New York Comic Con that the show is coming back for an 11th season in 2020 and that Lauren Cohan will return as Maggie in a regular role.
When Cohan left season 10 to shoot ABC drama “Whiskey Cavalier,” the writers sent her character away in some sort of pilgrimage to an unseen neighborhood, leaving the door open for her return. “Whiskey Cavalier” was cancelled after one season, opening the door for Cohan to return.
Maggie Rhee - once the leader of Hilltop - is mentioned in the first episode of season 10 debuting Sunday in a discussion between Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) and Carol Peletier (Melissa McBride). She has clearly been gone from this group for a long time given the time frames involved.
Although "The Walking Dead" has shed two-thirds of its audience from its peak five years ago, it remains the most popular active show on cable TV. There is now two spin-off series including a new one as well as a movie starring Andrew Lincoln.
And under showrunner Angela Kang, critics and viewers who have remained say the show is certainly better than it was toward the end of Scott Gimple's run. But millions have abandoned ship anyway.
Danai Gurira, who plays the popular Michonne and arrived season 3, will be leaving this season. Lincoln's Rick departed last year.
The show is shot mostly around Senoia which has flourished, and AMC owns a studio outside the town.
