The Walking Dead - Robert Kirkman interview

Season one of the hit zombie drama is out on UK DVD today; here's some Q&A with the comic's creator, taken from the latest issue

Season one of the hit zombie drama is out on UK DVD today. Here's some Q&A with the executive producer of the show and creator of the original comic, taken from the latest issue of SFX.

SFX: Is there anything the TV show’s done that you’d have liked to do in the comics?

"Little tidbits here and there - things like Morgan and Rick exchanging walkie-talkies, that’s a cool thing that I wish I thought of. Every episode has three or four moments where I’m like, “Oh, I didn’t think of that…” I think it’s remarkable that Frank [Darabont] and the writers were able to come at it with a fresh set of eyes, look at what I did, and go, ‘Okay, this works, and this could be better; this will be really cool if we take it in this direction."

SFX: What are your thoughts on the decision to keep Shane as a regular character?

I think it’s great that Shane is still alive! I’m working on the second season right now - I’m in the writers’ room full time - and there’s a lot of cool stuff that comes out of Shane living. So I think that was a great decision."

SFX: Would you like to see him remain alive for most of the show’s run?

"Yeah. Jon Bernthal’s a fantastic actor, and there’s a lot of rich storytelling stuff to do with Shane’s character. It’s also cool in that in the second season we’re going to Hershel’s Farm, and we’re doing a lot of the stuff from the comic. But in the comic, Shane isn’t there. So just by having Shane exist in this world, there’s so many differences and so many cool little things that you wouldn’t think of - Shane’s presence changes some things that happened. It’s kinda like an alternate dimension in The Walking Dead , where Shane lived long enough to be on Hershel’s Farm. I think that’ll be a cool thing for comic fans to watch in the second season."

Joseph McCabe

Don't forget you can read our DVD review here, and quiz yourself on your zombie knowledge here!

Deputy Editor, SFX

Ian Berriman has been working for SFX – the world's leading sci-fi, fantasy and horror magazine – since March 2002. He also writes for Total Film, Electronic Sound and Retro Pop; other publications he's contributed to include Horrorville, When Saturday Comes and What DVD. A life-long Doctor Who fan, he's also a supporter of Hull City, and live-tweets along to BBC Four's Top Of The Pops repeats from his @TOTPFacts account.