Norman Reedus is returning, and this time Melissa McBride is by his side!
On Friday, July 27, AMC revealed a brand new trailer for season 2 of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon -- The Book of Carol at San Diego Comic-Con 2024. And, much to fans' delight, the trailer saw Reedus, 55, and McBride, 59, together on screen for the first time since the original series wrapped after 11 seasons in 2022.
The reunion of dynamic duo Daryl Dixon (Reedus) and Carol Peletier (McBride) -- who first stole hearts with their unlikely, slow-burn friendship in the original show -- was a long-time coming, as McBride was actually supposed to star in Daryl Dixon from the get-go.
Amongst shots of him wandering the French countryside and dispelling rumors about his death, Daryl admits, "I don't know if this is the place where I'm supposed to be."
Carol, on the other hand, is "looking for a friend" and enlists the help of another kindred spirit in order to locate Daryl, her long lost companion.
"We're talking about flying a plane across the ocean," her friend sighs incredulously.
With France in her sights, she sets out to make the journey until she gets surrounded by walkers who creep out of the wood work. After smashing heads and running for the plane that will take her abroad, she puts on her headset and flys into the unknown while Daryl contemplates returning to America.
The trailer then features shots of the Lourve Museum in ruins, Carol getting attacked by camouflaged walkers and Daryl flexing his combat prowess and taking down a team of soldiers.
As he kills his fair share of zombies and dodges mines, Daryl admits he keeps "thinking about the people I left behind" and "wondering if they're thinking about me." Eventually, a mysterious figure who closely resembles Carol comes up behind him.
AMC first announced that McBride would not be starring in the apocalypse spinoff in April 2022, over a year before its September 2023 premiere, stating that "relocating to Europe became logistically untenable for Melissa at this time." But in October 2023, at New York Comic-Con, the network confirmed that McBride would be joining The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon -- The Book of Carol in a regular role for season 2.
Per an official synopsis for the show, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon - The Book of Carol "picks up where season 1 left off, following fan-favorite characters Daryl Dixon (Reedus) and Carol Peletier (McBride). They both confront old demons while she fights to find her friend and he struggles with his decision to stay in France, causing tension at the Nest. Additionally, Genet (Anne Charrier)'s movement builds momentum, setting Pouvoir on a violent collision course with the Union of Hope in the fight for France's future."
During the 2024 Comic-Con panel in San Diego -- which featured Reedus and McBride as well as cast member Louis Puech Scigliuzzi, showrunner David Zabel and executive producer and director Greg Nicotero -- Reedus announced that The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon -- The Book of Carol had been renewed for a third season and would be continuing Dixon's story in Spain.
Production of season 3 is scheduled to begin next month and will be based in Madrid, along with extensive location shooting planned in the Galicia, Aragon, Catalonia and Valencia regions.
Though Reedus joked that "you'd be filming in Costa Rica if I had my way," he said, "Spain is awesome and we pick up where we left off."
"It's interesting shooting this show outside of Georgia, and the way that we filmed it for so long," he admitted, noting how The Walking Dead crew has been coming to San Diego Comic-Con for 13 years. "It becomes giant machine. We sort of picked up these two characters and David put them in a spot, and we recreated the world around these characters."
He also opened up about how excited he was for McBride's return to TWD universe and confessed that he "couldn't wait for Melissa to show up" to reconcile the two "partners in crime."
"To watch Melissa come to Europe and kick ass ... that's been a real joy for me to watch," he said.
According to the network, season 3 is set to follow Carol and Daryl "as they continue their journey towards home and the ones they love. As they struggle to find their way back, the path takes them farther astray, leading them through distant lands with ever-changing and unfamiliar conditions as they witness the various effects of the Walker apocalypse."
In the press release, Reedus raved about his partnership with McBride, saying: "I couldn't be more thrilled to announce a third season and to be working side by side with the brilliant Melissa McBride. Season two is some of my favorite storytelling of this series. Watching Melissa shine along with our brilliant cast and crew has been one of my fondest memories playing this character. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did making it and we can't wait to keep the story going."
McBride echoed her costar, saying in her own statement: "I'm really appreciating the new challenges for Daryl and Carol being so far from all they've ever known... what it means for them, what it brings for each of them, apart and together. There's still so much ahead to unpack in France for the coming season 2, and a breathtaking finale. And now Spain! I already know that David Zabel's storytelling is making the most of all that is so beautiful and unique to Spain. We start shooting there in just a few weeks... such excitement looking forward!"
Elsewhere in the Comic-Con panel on July 26, Zabel revealed that The Resident alum, Manish Dayal, would not only be joining the cast but would also be an integral part of the second installment.
"We get to deepen a lot of the characters who are only lightly introduced in season one, but one new character who's very crucial is a character named Ash, played by Manish Dayal, who's from the show The Resident. And he's fabulous... And he plays a character that, for reasons that, if this is possible, is both altruistic and self serving, [and who] Carol becomes friendly with and forms a bond with."
"When she meets him, he's sort of holed up, living like a hermit in what was his summer home in Maine. And the story sort of goes from there as Carol encounters it."
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The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon -- The Book of Carol is set to premiere on Sept. 29 on AMC and AMC+.
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