The Walking Dead's Andrew Lincoln had planned on appearing in an episode of Creepshow. However, the coronavirus pandemic brought an abrupt end to those plans.
In an interview with Collider, Lincoln, who played Rick Grimes for nine seasons on AMC's The Walking Dead, confirmed that he was to be part of the second season of Creepshow, a horror anthology series airing on the video-on-demand platform Shudder. The project would have seen Lincoln once again working with Greg Nicotero, an executive producer, director and special make-up effects supervisor of The Walking Dead.
The episode featuring Lincoln was to be filmed in Atlanta, which also serves as a set location for AMC's hit zombie series. But, as has been the case for most television and movie productions in 2020, those plans changed when the pandemic struck. According to Lincoln, the episode was going to be a "great one".
The original Creepshow was a 1982 horror anthology film written by Stephen King and directed by George A. Romero. The film spawned two sequels, one in 1987 and another in 2007. In 2018, Shudder, which is owned by AMC Networks, announced the production of a web television series based on the films and produced by Nicotero.
Season 1 of Creepshow was comprised of six episodes, each telling two stories. The first season was a massive success for Shudder, with the premier episode breaking streaming records for the five-year-old platform. Though the second season was delayed by the pandemic, production resumed in September. Shudder's general manager has stated that Nicotero and his team are currently developing scripts for a 3rd season.
Since departing The Walking Dead in 2018, Lincoln has only appeared in one project, Penguin Bloom, which recently premiered at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival. Despite leaving The Walking Dead, Lincoln has signed on for a trilogy of films in which he will once again play Rick Grimes. In July, The Walking Dead co-creator Robert Kirkman stated that while the pandemic has delayed production of the first film, progress has been made and that fans can expect updates in the near future.
Shudder’s Creepshow is produced by the Cartel with Monster Agency Productions, Taurus Entertainment, and Striker Entertainment: Stan Spry, Jeff Holland, and Eric Woods are executive producers and Geoff Silverman and Anthony Fankhauser are co-executive producers for the Cartel; Greg Nicotero and Brian Witten are executive producers and Julia Hobgood is a co-executive producer for Monster Agency Productions; Robert Dudelson, James Dudelson and Jordan Kizwani are executive producers for Taurus Entertainment; Russell Binder is executive producer and Marc Mostman co-executive producer for Striker Entertainment.
(via Collider)