Madrid doubles as London in the new season of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon

The series The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon

This summer, Madrid witnessed a unique kind of invasion – not one by tourists or diplomats, but by zombies. Though it wasn’t the end of the world, the transformation of some of Madrid’s most iconic streets, just a stone’s throw from the luxurious Four Seasons Hotel, gave the city an apocalyptic makeover. This time, the Spanish capital was doubling as London during the early stages of the highly anticipated third season of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, the spin-off of one of the most successful TV franchises of the modern era.

Spanish production company Ánima Stillking is part of the production team, bringing its expertise to the project. With Madrid as the base for filming, this season of the The Walking Dead spin-off will explore a variety of Spanish landscapes, from urban scenes to the country’s diverse rural settings. This underlines Madrid’s reputation as a prime location for international projects, further solidifying its position as a crucial player in the global production industry.

This is far from the first time Madrid has stood in for international locations, according to Madrid Film Office, the media office of Madrid City Council. In 2019, the capital’s architectural resemblance between its corralas and Mexico City’s vecindades attracted the production of Terminator: Dark Fate (2019), which filmed several Mexican-set scenes in the city. AMC’s series Soulmates (2020) also utilised Madrid to portray cities such as New York and Mexico City.

The Movistar Plus+ miniseries Dime quién soy (2020) recreated Buenos Aires in Madrid, combining the Matadero Madrid location with CGI to simulate the Argentine capital, while La Fortuna [+] (2021), directed by Alejandro Amenábar, utilised Madrid to represent scenes set in Atlanta and Washington. Madrid has also played Moscow in the US series In From the Cold (2022) and Paris in Berlin (2024), the highly anticipated spin-off of Money Heist, both produced by Netflix.

These examples only scratch the surface of how Madrid, with its rich variety of locations and skilled production industry, has become an indispensable resource for filmmakers from around the world, recreating iconic locations from distant lands.