Actress Melissa McBride is teasing a stronger, more centered Carol Peletier when she joins The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol for its second season. Fans have been hoping for the reunion of Daryl and Carol since the flagship series ended in 2022, and Season 2 of the Norman Reedus-led show will be delivering just that. According to McBride, the series will give her character a chance to do things that couldn’t happen on The Walking Dead, as Carol finds her “warrior self.”

In an interview with The Wrap, McBride discussed her character’s evolution, which has come a long way from the early episodes of The Walking Dead’s first season. Although the trailer reveals how Carol will find her way to France, we don’t know how she will reunite with Daryl, or what direction the show will take at that point. McBride says the circumstances will allow for her character to grow like never before.

Without going into too much detail, we’re doing some things that I wanted to do in the original series. Deal with things, deal with the repercussions of loss and things like that. Things that just — unspoken things nobody had conversations about, and how everything that they’ve been through really affects them.

Carol has come a long way since Season 1 of The Walking Dead. She overcame an abusive relationship and the death of her daughter to become a leader and protector, even when she didn’t want to be, and always with a good sense of cynicism. For The Book of Carol, McBride says her character has healed from the pain of the past, and is ready to move on as a fighter.

What feels different now is that she’s healed from a lot of that. And she has really harnessed her, I guess warrior self, survivor self, and is now facing a slew of different challenges and coming to terms with things that have happened. It feels like a good progression to me, and I’m really proud of this character. I’m very excited looking forward to what’s coming next.

Who Will Appear in Season 2 of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol?

As the trailer for Season 2 reveals, many of the surviving characters from the first season return in the new episodes. Daryl is seemingly accepting that he might actually have a home in France, after spending most of the first season frantically trying to find a way back to America. In addition to Reedus and McBride, Clémence Poésy is returning as Isabelle Carrière, as is Louis Puech Scigliuzzi as Laurent. At the end of the first season, Isabelle seemed to convince Daryl that he should stay in France, particularly to watch over Laurent. How Carol’s arrival will challenge that dynamic remains to be seen.

The trailer also reveals how Carol makes it to France. She meets Ash, played by Manish Dayal (The Resident, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) who has a plane that still works. He flies Carol to Europe, and they are immediately greeted by zombies. Ash appears to be a major character to start off, but it’s unclear if he will appear for the entire season. We also know that Genet (Anne Charrier) and her group, the Pouvoir des Vivants, will return, raising the possibility for some intense confrontations.

At Comic Con, it was announced that Daryl Dixon was renewed for a third season, which will be filmed in Spain. However, no details were revealed about how Season 2 plays into Season 3.

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol premieres on AMC and AMC+ on September 29, 2024.