Daryl Dixon, played by actor Norman Reedus, in front of an image of the Arc de Triomphe

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon could present the perfect avenue to answer all the lingering questions left over from The Walking Dead. We’ve already seen hints of this in season 1, where we find out how the virus that created the Walkers escaped containment. Revealing the origin of the zombie virus was a big move given creator Robert Kirkman’s insistence on leaving that topic a mystery. With actor Norman Reedus’ recent statements about a potential seven-year future for his character Daryl Dixon, the potential is there to answer even more mysteries.

Season 2 of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon premieres September 29th, 2024, and will see a reunion between Daryl and his longtime friend Carol from the original show. Bringing back this fan-favorite pairing will strengthen the anchor point that Daryl is for the series, and allow both characters to grow in new directions. With series like The Walking Dead: Dead City taking the franchise in new directions, Daryl’s story has a golden opportunity that the others don’t.

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Carol aiming Daryl's crossbow at a zombie in The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon season 2

Daryl Dixon On Radio With Carol In Daryl Dixon Season 1 Episode 5

Reedus’ comments on the future of Daryl as a character and to continue innovating on the original series’ formula means there will be plenty of fertile ground to answer some of The Walking Dead’s biggest mysteries. While we’ve seen how the virus escaped containment, that still doesn’t explain how it was created beyond showing us the teams that ultimately developed it. It’s still not clear, for instance, what the Primrose and Violet teams were working from that created such a devastating virus, and why they would continue with such a devastating line of work.

We’ve already seen numerous variants throughout each series, and the Walkers only seem to get more and more dangerous as the franchise goes on.

France being the focal point of the outbreak is also something that could be further explored. Given the revelations about the Primrose team in TWD: Daryl Dixon’s first season, and the discovery that France is overrun with new and strange permutations of the series’ Walkers, the show seems set to dive in to these aspects and even reveal the how and why of the Walkers’ evolution. We’ve already seen numerous variants throughout each series, and the Walkers only seem to get more and more dangerous as the franchise goes on.

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Laurent surrounded by zombies in The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon episode 4.

The franchise has already veered far away from Kirkman’s original vision for The Walking Dead, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The character of Daryl Dixon alone was a departure from the source material, one whose popularity altered the course of the franchise as a whole. Still, knowing how far to go and when to stop can be a tricky prospect. Many fans want answers to these burning questions, and as long as there are still new mysteries to solve and the characters remain engaging, they’ll keep coming back for more.

This series seems set to give people what they want; more answers, new mysteries, and, with The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon’s shift in filming locations in season 3, a whole new part of the world to explore. With each new answer, new context may emerge for things we already thought solved, and there’s no telling what the franchise might look like when Reedus finally takes off Dixon’s winged vest for the last time. Whatever that future holds, though, it promises to be an exciting ride.