'The Walking Dead' Season 8 News: EP Addresses Show's Ratings Decline
"The Walking Dead" executive producer David Alpert knows that the show's ratings are slipping, but he is not worried about the show's future because of it.
Over the past couple of seasons of the zombie drama, especially after the season 7 premiere that featured a double death, it has received criticism about how the show likes to draw the story out and how it sometimes favors shock value over quality storytelling.
In an interview with Variety, Alpert says that he remains confident that "The Walking Dead" will be around for a while despite the dip in ratings.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
I don't think in any way the brand has lost its relevance. I think in general we're just seeing a decline in urgency across all media to consume something at a specific time.
He says that since fans have other ways to catch "The Walking Dead" other than tuning in to the television, this hit the ratings department hard:
I think overall we're seeing increased competition, not just from television and not just from streaming services, but you get content everywhere. The idea that people watch things super live, that need to view on the same night and we're measuring ratings like a live rating, I feel like it's a little be anachronistic to be like, "Oh, you're not holding the same ratings that you were."
He says that some viewers are just starting to binge-watch "The Walking Dead," despite the zombie drama having wrapped up its eighth season.
I still get people coming up to me at conventions talking about, they're in the middle of Season 6. They can't believe what's going on. I still get people coming up to me like, "You killed Beth? You killed Beth? What's the matter with you?" And I'm like, "Are you in Season 5?" and they're like, "Yeah, I'm in season 5!"
"The Walking Dead" season 8 returns Feb. 25 next year and will claim its biggest and most surprising apocalyptic victim in the show's history yet.
