The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon swaps out the samey forests of Georgia for a much more expansive and stunning set in France. All of a sudden, the franchise can explore some of the world's most legendary locations, such as the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Catacombs of Paris, and Mont Saint-Michel. The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon has visited all of these locations, culminating in one spectacular spinoff.
Daryl Dixon season 2, The Book of Carol, is the last season of the show set in France. Moving into season 3, the production switches locations to Spain. In a recent interview with Collider, our titular duo discussed working in France, and what about it was so unique.
"There's a poetic, artistic history to the locations that we're shooting in that adds a lot to the show, not just visually," Reedus explained. "There are lines in the show that talk about how we've survived these types of things before."
Naturally, as the location has changed, so too has the atmosphere. "There are color palette changes. We were just dripping in sweat in Georgia the whole time. Now, it's super windy and the atmosphere is different," Reedus said.
As for Melissa McBride, who made her spinoff debut this season, she was equally excited to switch not only country, but continent. "A lot of these locations are just turning into characters themselves," she said. "The uniqueness of the locations gives challenges to the actors or to the characters, and that's why they're chosen because some of them are just hard to get around, and some are fortresses."
In addition, producer David Zabel discussed the huge change in location, and how it came to be from a creative standpoint:
""The task for us from the very beginning was imagining something we could do that would be beautiful visually that would be distinctive from the Walking Dead, and then building characters and stories around those places. Mont Saint-Michel is an obvious example. But even trying to build a sequence at the Louvre, which is in last week's episode, the Catacombs, trying to think, 'How can we get to these cool places that feel nothing like a dusty forest in Georgia?' Then, how can we build characters and stories that justify that and make sense in that world? So, that's the way in which we try to make the show feel different and new. These guys obviously are characters that the audience is very familiar with and love, so there's a connection to the Walking Dead legacy. That part is the part that makes it feel fresh.""
While the third season takes place mostly in Spain, Zabel teases a visit somewhere else beforehand. "Eventually, it's in Spain, but there is an interesting stop in between France and Spain that's pretty cool and exciting," he teased. "Stephen Merchant is in the first episode and plays a very interesting character that we come across towards the beginning."
The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon season 2 — The Book of Carol — continues Sundays on AMC. Enjoy the season finale this Sunday!
To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and Twitter account, sign up for our exclusive newsletter and check out our YouTube channel.