The Walking Dead Premieres

The Walking Dead is a television drama series developed by Frank Darabont. It is based on the comic book series The Walking Dead  by Robert Kirkman Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard

The third season, which premieres today at 9 p.m., finds the survivors coming across the too-good-to-be-true town of Woodbury, a zombie-free enclave that’s led by a cutthroat character dubbed the Governor. British actor David Morrissey, who was cast as the iconic villain from the comics earlier this year, is downplaying the Governor’s “MUHAHAHA!” ruthlessness.

Kirkman, who serves as an executive producer on the show, promised the third season, which will be split in half, will feature some surprises that even the most die-hard “Walking Dead” fans won’t see coming. (The series has continually veered from the source material, whether it’s drawing out story lines or killing off characters earlier than in the comics.)

The series stars Andrew Lincoln as sheriff's deputy Rick Grimes who wakes up after being in a coma to find the world dominated by "walkers", resembling the zombies of George A. Romero's horror movies. He sets out to find his family and other survivors along the way. The Walking Dead premiered on October 31, 2010 on the cable television channel  AMC in the United States. Based on its reception, AMC renewed the series for a second season of 13 episodes which premiered on October 16, 2011. Two episodes into the second season, AMC announced that the show would return for a third season, scheduled to start airing on October 14, 2012.

“The Walking Dead” masterminds are also pushing their realistic take on the zombie apocalypse into other avenues: an episodic game from Telltale Games based on the comic; a first-person shooter game due from Activision focusing on Daryl, who doesn’t appear in the comics; and mazes at Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights in California and Florida