Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) and Carol Peletier (Melissa McBride) are two of the most popular characters in The Walking Dead, with them building a special bond with each other that saw them always look out for each other over the course of the show. As The Walking Dead got closer to its conclusion, many fans didn’t want to see the story and relationship of Daryl and Carol end, and a spin-off show featuring the two friends was set to be produced following the end of the show. Unfortunately, it was later revealed that Carol wouldn’t be appearing in the upcoming The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon.
This news came as a shock and disappointment to fans of The Walking Dead as the two appearing on screen again made The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon the most highly anticipated spin-off so far. There has been a lot of speculation as to why McBride pulled out of the show, but we have the answers. Here is why Carol won’t be appearing in The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon.
The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon Was Originally Meant To Feature Both Daryl And Carol
The characters of Daryl and Carol captured viewers’ hearts with their friendship that took on a more mother/son relationship as the show went on. By the time the show reached its conclusion, it was hard to imagine a world without Daryl and Carol in it and especially not being together. Although the main show has ended, the world was due to get more Daryl and Carol on screen, but sadly that won’t be the case anymore.
For many years there had been rumors of a spin-off series that would focus on Daryl and Carol following the events of The Walking Dead, or that would take place during the show’s timeline if one of the characters was killed off before the finale. As The Walking Dead was coming to an end it was confirmed that a spin-0ff show featuring the pair was set to be produced along with numerous other spin-offs that will focus on the likes of Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and Michonne (Danai Gurira), as well as existing shows such as Fear The Walking Dead, The Walking Dead: World Beyond, and Tales of the Walking Dead. Unfortunately, now that The Walking Dead has ended, it has been confirmed that we won’t be seeing Carol appear in a spin-off any time soon as Melissa McBride has pulled out of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon.
Why Melissa McBride Turned Down The Show
The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon was announced in September 2020 along with the news that The Walking Dead season 11 would be the conclusion of the series. However, it wasn’t until April 2022 that it was confirmed that McBride had pulled out of the show, and it looks as if this decision was made while filming of The Walking Dead season 11 was being filmed. During the finale episode, after discovering that Rick is still alive, Daryl sets off on his own to look for Rick while leaving Carol behind in the Commonwealth. It is likely that this scene would have originally seen both of them set off together to search for their lost friend.
The news that Melissa McBride had pulled out of the show came as a huge shock for fans, but the reason behind it made a lot of sense. With The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon taking place in France, it would mean that the cast and crew would need to relocate to Europe for a period of time while filming takes place, and McBride just didn’t want to do that. After playing Carol for 12 years, McBride chose to take a break, and living in another country for a few months just didn’t appeal to her. Reedus did receive some backlash for this, with some claiming he chose the show to be filmed in Europe so McBride would pull out, which makes no sense and there doesn’t appear to be any truth in that as actors don’t typically get to make those decisions and the relationship between Reedus and McBride seems to be as strong as ever. It is unclear whether this marks the end of the Carol character or whether she and Daryl will reunite in a future show.
READ NEXT: 5 Characters in The Walking Dead That Somehow Survived
Follow Us
