Season 5 of The Walking Dead hasn’t even premiered yet (for those setting DVRs, the show returns this Sunday at 9 p.m.), but AMC’s faith in the top-rated drama clearly hasn’t wavered—the network announced today that the show has been renewed for a sixth season.
The promise of another year of Walking Dead combined the recent announcement of the upcoming companion series gives fans plenty of reasons to be excited, but the early renewal is especially good news for Georgians. It’s suspected that a recently built set in Senoia, just south of Atlanta, is a stand in for the show’s Alexandria, Virginia “safe zone,” meaning that no matter where the fictional plot relocates, filming should stay firmly planted in Georgia and carry on contributing to the state’s billion-dollar film industry. Likewise, Atlanta’s Walker-Stalker Con (October 17-19) will continue to draw hordes of rabid Norman Reedus fans, movie tours will rumble on, and Atlanta will continue to remain synonymous with the word “zombie,” for better or worse.
But now that the series is certainly locked in for another year, let us all sincerely hope season 5 doesn’t jump the shark.
