<p>Once the highest-rated series in US cable television history, 'The Walking Dead' is officially on its last legs.</p>.<p>The record-breaking zombie show will conclude in 2022 after a monster-sized 11th season spanning 24 episodes, network AMC said in a statement Wednesday.</p>.<p>"It's been ten years 'gone bye;' what lies ahead are two more to come and stories and stories to tell beyond that," said co-creator Scott Gimple.</p>.<p>Launched in 2010, the post-apocalyptic horror series repeatedly shattered cable audience records, peaking with the season five premiere in 2014, which drew 17.3 million viewers.</p>.<p>But audiences began declining steeply in 2017.</p>.<p>While the flagship show is now being killed off, the lucrative "Walking Dead" franchise has a lengthy afterlife planned.</p>.<p>AMC is forging ahead with a new spin-off focused on the characters Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) and Carol Peletier (Melissa McBride), to premiere in 2023.</p>.<p>A separate, anthology-style series will feature standalone episodes or groups of episodes focusing on individual characters -- both existing favorites and new.</p>.<p>No release date was announced.</p>.<p>Another spin-off, "Fear the Walking Dead," has been running since 2015, and "The Walking Dead: World Beyond" -- a new series about the first generation raised in the apocalypse -- will debut October 4.</p>.<p>"The Walking Dead" universe is based on a comic book about a zombie-ridden vision of the United States.</p>.<p>The original series centered on Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), a sheriff who wakes up from a coma to find the world overrun by the undead, and goes on a search for other survivors.</p>.<p>Lincoln left the show in 2018, but his character is due to star in standalone feature films.</p>.<p>The concluding episodes of season 10 of "The Walking Dead" have yet to air, after producers in March revealed production had been halted by the coronavirus pandemic.</p>.<p>Six remaining episodes from this season are now scheduled for early next year.</p>.<p>AMC has enjoyed an unprecedented string of successful series in recent years including "Mad Men" and "Breaking Bad" -- which itself generated popular spin-off "Better Call Saul."</p>
<p>Once the highest-rated series in US cable television history, 'The Walking Dead' is officially on its last legs.</p>.<p>The record-breaking zombie show will conclude in 2022 after a monster-sized 11th season spanning 24 episodes, network AMC said in a statement Wednesday.</p>.<p>"It's been ten years 'gone bye;' what lies ahead are two more to come and stories and stories to tell beyond that," said co-creator Scott Gimple.</p>.<p>Launched in 2010, the post-apocalyptic horror series repeatedly shattered cable audience records, peaking with the season five premiere in 2014, which drew 17.3 million viewers.</p>.<p>But audiences began declining steeply in 2017.</p>.<p>While the flagship show is now being killed off, the lucrative "Walking Dead" franchise has a lengthy afterlife planned.</p>.<p>AMC is forging ahead with a new spin-off focused on the characters Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) and Carol Peletier (Melissa McBride), to premiere in 2023.</p>.<p>A separate, anthology-style series will feature standalone episodes or groups of episodes focusing on individual characters -- both existing favorites and new.</p>.<p>No release date was announced.</p>.<p>Another spin-off, "Fear the Walking Dead," has been running since 2015, and "The Walking Dead: World Beyond" -- a new series about the first generation raised in the apocalypse -- will debut October 4.</p>.<p>"The Walking Dead" universe is based on a comic book about a zombie-ridden vision of the United States.</p>.<p>The original series centered on Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), a sheriff who wakes up from a coma to find the world overrun by the undead, and goes on a search for other survivors.</p>.<p>Lincoln left the show in 2018, but his character is due to star in standalone feature films.</p>.<p>The concluding episodes of season 10 of "The Walking Dead" have yet to air, after producers in March revealed production had been halted by the coronavirus pandemic.</p>.<p>Six remaining episodes from this season are now scheduled for early next year.</p>.<p>AMC has enjoyed an unprecedented string of successful series in recent years including "Mad Men" and "Breaking Bad" -- which itself generated popular spin-off "Better Call Saul."</p>