Despite a dip in the ratings during its ninth season, The Walking Dead isn't done spawning spinoffs. A third series in the Walking Dead universe was announced back in April, but news about what it will bring to the zombie apocalypse has been scarce. Well, now we finally have some developments: the next Walking Dead spinoff has cast three characters. Alexa Mansour, Nicolas Cantu, and Hal Cumpston have joined the cast of the new series.
If none of those names ring a bell, don't feel bad. None of these three actors have the kind of star power that The Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead packed into their first seasons, although it's certainly true that Andrew Lincoln and Norman Reedus weren't necessarily household names back in the beginning. That said, they do all have some credits to their names. But let's start with what's in store on their new show.
The long-rumored third Walking Dead show received a series order from AMC in the spring, and it will be something very new. The ensemble will be led by a pair of young female protagonists, and the focus will be quite different from both The Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead.
The new show will chronicle the first generation coming of age in the zombie apocalypse. The Walking Dead showed glimpses of this with characters like Carl, Enid, and post-time jump Judith. This third show will focus on younger characters, and see some become villains and some becomes heroes. Some will probably also become victims. This is the Walking Dead franchise, after all!
Considering what happened to Carl in Season 8 and Enid (among a whole lot of others in the big fair episode of Season 9), at least, I'd say we can rule out either character pulling a Morgan and moving to the spinoff!
Of the three actors recently cast for the new show, one of them will play a protagonist. Alexa Mansour is one of the two leading ladies. Variety reports that although AMC has not officially commented on her character (or either of the other two), sources state that Mansour's character has a good nature but also a knack for breaking the rules and living in the moment. Outwardly likable and engaging, she's hiding an inner sadness, which makes sense. This is the zombie apocalypse.
Alexa Mansour has largely landed one-off roles over the years in her career, including episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, How to Get Away with Murder, and recently, Madam Secretary. She did land two multi-episode TV gigs, though, with The Resident and SEAL Team, both in 2018.
Nicolas Cantu will reportedly play a character with an old soul and friendly nature, though small for his age. That could normally work against somebody who will have to fight for their life in the zombie apocalypse, but the character has a blackbelt in karate. I'm not sure how effective karate would be against zombies, but it could be effective against people, and they can be even worse than zombies in the Walking Dead universe!
As it happens, Nicolas Cantu has a fair amount of experience in showbiz, but largely via voice acting with shows like Lego Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures, Sofia the First, and The Amazing World of Gumball. When it comes to live-action, he has appeared in episodes of The Good Place and Bizaardvark.
As for Hal Cumpston, his character will reportedly be big for his age, so maybe he and Nicolas Cantu's characters should team up. A shy loner, he hates the fact that he tends to scare people (often kids) away. Cumpston doesn't have the extensive TV experience of his co-stars, as his biggest credit is writing, producing, and starring in Australian coming of age comedy Bilched.
The third Walking Dead TV show has yet to receive a title, but it will begin production this summer in Virginia for a 2020 premiere date on AMC. The Walking Dead writer and producer Matt Negrete co-created the series with Walking Dead franchise head honcho Scott Gimple. Negrete is also serving as showrunner. The first season of the spinoff will be comprised of ten episodes.
For now, you can catch new episodes of Fear the Walking Dead on AMC Sundays at 9 p.m. ET, with Season 10 of The Walking Dead premiering at some point this fall.
