Given the blockbuster success of long-running zombie apocalypse series The Walking Dead, it’s no surprise that AMC has been gradually building out a broader Walking Dead Cinematic Universe, with multiple spinoff series either already airing or in the works. So although the original series wrapped up its run in November of 2022, and its first spinoff series Fear The Walking Dead will air its series finale this upcoming November 19th, fans won’t have to wait long for new content.
In the past year, the TWD powers that be have been focusing on rolling out new shows centered around fan favorite characters, including Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus), whose six-episode spinoff series premiered in September, and the unexpected pairing of Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), who starred in The Walking Dead: Dead City which aired this summer. Next up is a spinoff series centered on one of TWD’s most popular duos ever, titled, The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live. Here’s everything to know about the series, including its cast, plot and release date.
Related: Your Guide to Every ‘Walking Dead’ Spinoff Series
What is The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live about?
TWD stars Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira made a surprise appearance at San Diego Comic-Con in 2022 to announce the series. “This has been the most extraordinary journey playing Rick Grimes for the best part of a decade,” Lincoln said at that time in a press release, per Empire. “I’m so excited to be returning to the screen as Rick, reuniting with Danai as Michonne, and bringing the fans an epic love story to add to The Walking Dead universe.”
Although plot details have been kept largely under wraps, it’s clear that “epic love story” is very much the vibe. “Rick and Michonne are thrown into another world, built on a war against the dead… And ultimately, a war against the living,” says the official synopsis for The Ones Who Live. “Can they find each other and who they were in a place and situation unlike any they’ve ever known before? Are they enemies? Lovers? Victims? Victors? Without each other, are they even alive—or will they find that they, too, are the Walking Dead?”
Do you need to watch The Walking Dead to watch The Ones Who Live?
Unlike a more standalone spinoff series like Fear The Walking Dead, which introduced a cast of entirely new characters, The Ones Who Live will definitely be more satisfying if you’re familiar with the backstory. It focuses on the alliance and love story between Rick Grimes (Lincoln) and Michonne (Gurira), two characters whose uneasy alliance-turned-romance became a highlight of the original Walking Dead series. One of the show’s many deviations from its comic book source material, the “Richonne” relationship was beloved by fans thanks to the undeniable chemistry between Lincoln and Gurira.
Rick, the protagonist of the original show, seemingly died in an explosion midway through its ninth season, when he blew up a bridge in a bid to save his friends. But although he was presumed dead within the series, viewers knew better, thanks to a scene in which Anne (Pollyanna McIntosh) whisked an unconscious Rick away from the wreckage by helicopter. The following season, Michonne discovers evidence that Rick is alive, and leaves her group behind in order to search for him, laying the groundwork for their spinoff series.
Related: Inside the Blood and Guts of The Walking Dead
Who is in the cast of The Ones Who Live?
Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes
The entire Walking Dead franchise began with an unforgettable pilot episode in which Rick, a sheriff’s deputy in Georgia, wakes up from a coma to find the entire world ravaged by a zombie apocalypse. Like every character who survived for more than a few episodes, Rick went on a dark and grueling journey over the subsequent seasons, and seemingly died a heroic death in Season 9, Episode 5, “What Comes After.” That episode aired in 2018, but Lincoln made one last appearance in the show’s series finale, in a scene confirming that Rick was alive.
Danai Gurira as Michonne
Although she wasn’t introduced until late in the Season 2 finale, Michonne is an indelible part of the TWD ensemble. A skilled katana-wielding warrior with a traumatic history, she was initially guarded and reluctant to trust anyone, but gradually bonded with fellow survivors—and especially with Rick, who’s experienced similar loss in his past. After Rick’s apparent death, it’s revealed (via a time jump) that Michonne gave birth to his son, Rick Jr. (RJ), who is five years old as of The Walking Dead Season 10.
Pollyanna McIntosh as Anne, a.k.a. Jadis Stokes
Initially introduced as the mysterious and duplicitous leader of The Scavengers, Anne has been an antagonist both in The Walking Dead and in its second spinoff series, The World Beyond. Her motivations and morals are often hard to pin down, and it looks like that will remain true in The Ones Who Live—it’s thanks to her that Rick is alive, but at what cost?
Terry O’Quinn as Beale
O’Quinn, known and loved by TV fans as John Locke on Lost, is a new addition to the TWD-verse. He’s the major general of the Civic Republic Military, the shrouded military/police organization for which Anne also works.
Lesley-Ann Brandt as Pearl Thorne
No details have yet been released about Pearl, who’s another new addition to the cast. Brandt is best known for her season regular role as Mazikeen in Lucifer, and has also appeared in Gotham and CSI: NY.
Related: The Best Movies About Viruses and Pandemics
What is the The Ones Who Live release date?
The Ones Who Live will premiere in February 2024, with an exact day yet to be confirmed. Many networks have been switching up their schedules in light of delays caused by the ongoing SAG strike, so this date’s not set in stone.
How many episodes are in The Ones Who Live?
Like other recent character-focused spinoffs Dead City and Daryl Dixon, The Ones Who Live will be six episodes long. But despite the relatively short episode count, it’s not a limited series. Like the other shows mentioned, it’s pitched as the first season of a potential ongoing show following Rick and Michonne throughout multiple arcs.
How to watch The Ones Who Live
As an AMC original series, The Ones Who Live will premiere on AMC and AMC+, and will air episodes weekly. It’s not yet clear whether AMC+ subscribers will get early access to new episodes of the series, as has been the case with other Walking Dead shows in the past.
Is there a trailer for The Ones Who Live?
Although the full trailer hasn’t yet been released, AMC did run a teaser trailer at New York Comic Con in October 2023, offering fans their first glimpse of Rick and Michonne together again. Technically, the pair aren’t ever shown together; instead, the footage focuses on their separate bloodied and bruised journeys as they gradually find their way back to each other. Watch this space for a full trailer when it drops.
