# The Walking Dead (season 11)
The eleventh season of *The Walking Dead* is the final season of AMC's post-apocalyptic television series, an expanded run of 24 episodes broadcast in three eight-episode blocks between August 2021 and November 2022 that brought the flagship show to a close after 12 years, 11 seasons, and 177 episodes.[1](https://www.amc.com/blogs/the-walking-dead-ending-season11-daryl-carol-spin-off--1008424) • [2](https://www.theringer.com/2022/11/21/tv/the-walking-dead-series-finale-season-11-zombies-spinoffs) Angela Kang served as showrunner.[3](https://www.amc.com/shows/the-walking-dead--1002293?display=42&tab-selected=The+Walking+Dead)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Status | Final season of the series; announced on September 9, 2020 as an expanded two-year, 24-episode season[1](https://www.amc.com/blogs/the-walking-dead-ending-season11-daryl-carol-spin-off--1008424) |
| Broadcast | Premiere aired in August 2021 (August 15 on AMC+, August 22 on AMC), in three eight-episode blocks ending with the series finale[4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oTBd0C8NfI) • [5](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/the-walking-dead-season-11-return-flash-forward) |
| Series finale | Episode 24, "Rest in Peace", aired November 20, 2022[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_walking_dead/s11/e24) |
| Showrunner | Angela Kang, showrunner, executive producer, and writer[3](https://www.amc.com/shows/the-walking-dead--1002293?display=42&tab-selected=The+Walking+Dead) |
| Story arcs | The Reapers, the Commonwealth (governed by Pamela Milton), and the Maggie-Negan conflict[2](https://www.theringer.com/2022/11/21/tv/the-walking-dead-series-finale-season-11-zombies-spinoffs) |
| Critical scores | 80% Tomatometer from 237 reviews and a 68% Popcornmeter score on Rotten Tomatoes; the Walking Dead Wiki records 81% from 224 reviews with an average rating of 5.7 out of 10[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_walking_dead/s11) • [8](https://walkingdead.fandom.com/wiki/Season_11_%28TV_Series%29) |
| Rating | TV-MA[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_walking_dead/s11) |
## Announcement and structure
AMC announced the ending on September 9, 2020. The network described *The Walking Dead* as the highest-rated series in the history of cable television and said the flagship would conclude with an expanded two-year eleventh season spanning 24 episodes; with six previously announced extra Season 10 episodes also scheduled, 30 remaining episodes would run through late 2022.[1](https://www.amc.com/blogs/the-walking-dead-ending-season11-daryl-carol-spin-off--1008424) The same announcement greenlit a spin-off focused on [Daryl Dixon](https://www.edgepedia.org/daryl-dixon) ([Norman Reedus](https://www.edgepedia.org/norman-reedus)) and [Carol Peletier](https://www.edgepedia.org/carol-peletier) (Melissa McBride), to premiere in 2023 and be run by Kang, who co-created it with Scott M. Gimple, chief content officer of The Walking Dead Universe.[1](https://www.amc.com/blogs/the-walking-dead-ending-season11-daryl-carol-spin-off--1008424)
The 24 episodes aired as three blocks of eight, with the second block returning to AMC in the season's midseason premiere and the blocks building toward the series finale.[5](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/the-walking-dead-season-11-return-flash-forward) The premiere was preceded by an official trailer released in July 2021 announcing an August 22 return on AMC and an August 15 stream on AMC+.[4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oTBd0C8NfI)
## Story
The season follows the show's established premise: survivors of a [zombie apocalypse](https://www.edgepedia.org/zombie-apocalypse) search for safety and security, and the interpersonal conflicts among them can be a greater threat than the walkers that roam the country.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_walking_dead/s11) Three named story strands carry the run. The season opens with the Reapers, a hostile faction whose storyline follows the premiere; an audience summary on Rotten Tomatoes notes the early episodes center on Maggie, Negan, Daryl, and Carol before the season turns to the Commonwealth, a large, well-resourced community introduced as the show's closing setting.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_walking_dead/s11) The Ringer's retrospective places Pamela Milton, the Commonwealth's governor, as the season's new tyrannical adversary in the line of predecessors running from the Governor to Gareth to Negan to [Alpha](https://www.edgepedia.org/alpha-the-walking-dead).[2](https://www.theringer.com/2022/11/21/tv/the-walking-dead-series-finale-season-11-zombies-spinoffs)
The first two episodes, "Acheron: Part I" and "Acheron: Part II", play as one feature-length story. Kang told Rotten Tomatoes they include an opening reminiscent of a well-known [Tom Cruise](https://www.edgepedia.org/tom-cruise) movie scene, the Maggie-Negan drama, a reunion for Daryl, and a hint of a major positive development for one of Alexandria's most beloved citizens. She also said there is room for some happiness for some of the characters before the series ends.[9](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/the-walking-dead-season-11-showrunner-angela-kang-on-what-the-final-season-has-in-store-for-fans/) The Alexandrians begin the season rebuilding after their destructive showdown with the Whisperers and are short on food, driving a dangerous supply mission.[9](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/the-walking-dead-season-11-showrunner-angela-kang-on-what-the-final-season-has-in-store-for-fans/) The finale, "[Rest in Peace](https://www.edgepedia.org/rest-in-peace-the-walking-dead)", aired November 20, 2022.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_walking_dead/s11/e24)
## Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes the season holds an 80% Tomatometer from 237 reviews and a 68% Popcornmeter score from more than 500 audience ratings; the site's critics consensus calls the eleventh season a solid enough conclusion to the series while noting the sense of finality is diminished by the promise of more spinoffs.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_walking_dead/s11) The Walking Dead Wiki, citing the same aggregator, records a slightly different figure of 81% from 224 reviews with an average rating of 5.7 out of 10; the two counts differ, and both are reported here as given.[8](https://walkingdead.fandom.com/wiki/Season_11_%28TV_Series%29) Metacritic lists no critic score for the season, with a user score of 6.3 based on 40 user ratings.[10](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-walking-dead/season-11/)
Viewer response divided. A Rotten Tomatoes audience reviewer called the ending good though not ideal, while another found the last episode strange.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_walking_dead/s11) The Ringer wrote that by the finale the show's viewership and cultural salience had ebbed, its linear ratings having first skyrocketed and then crashed, a consequence of variable writing, repetitive plotting, and the industry's shift toward streaming.[2](https://www.theringer.com/2022/11/21/tv/the-walking-dead-series-finale-season-11-zombies-spinoffs) For scale, the preceding Season 10 on AMC averaged a 0.99 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 3.04 million viewers.[11](https://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/the-walking-dead-season-11-ratings/)
## Aftermath
The finale closed the flagship series but not the franchise. AMC's 2020 announcement framed the ending as "a grand finale that will lead to new premieres", and the spin-off slate that followed includes *The Walking Dead: Dead City*, *The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon*, and *The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live*.[1](https://www.amc.com/blogs/the-walking-dead-ending-season11-daryl-carol-spin-off--1008424) In July 2026, Netflix and AMC Global Media announced a multi-year global licensing agreement giving the companies co-exclusive streaming rights to the original series and all six spin-off series, spanning 371 episodes; Netflix noted it had been the exclusive U.S. streaming home of *The Walking Dead* since 2011, and the deal extends availability to new territories including the UK, Italy, Australia, and New Zealand.[12](https://about.netflix.com/en/news/netflix-and-amc-global-media-announce-global-streaming-licensing-agreement-for-all-series-in-amcs-the-walking-dead-universe) Season 11 itself is available with a subscription on Netflix or for purchase on Fandango.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_walking_dead/s11)
## References
1. [The Walking Dead to Conclude With Expanded Two-Year 11th Season, Followed By Spin-Off Focused on Daryl and Carol, AMC Talk](https://www.amc.com/blogs/the-walking-dead-ending-season11-daryl-carol-spin-off--1008424)
2. [Farewell, 'The Walking Dead.' Your Zombies Were Too Slow., The Ringer](https://www.theringer.com/2022/11/21/tv/the-walking-dead-series-finale-season-11-zombies-spinoffs)
3. [About The Walking Dead, AMC](https://www.amc.com/shows/the-walking-dead--1002293?display=42&tab-selected=The+Walking+Dead)
4. [The Walking Dead Season 11 Official Trailer, YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oTBd0C8NfI)
5. [The Walking Dead season 11 time jump explained, SYFY Wire](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/the-walking-dead-season-11-return-flash-forward)
6. [The Walking Dead: Season 11, Episode 24 "Rest in Peace", Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_walking_dead/s11/e24)
7. [Season 11 – The Walking Dead, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_walking_dead/s11)
8. [Season 11 (TV Series), Walking Dead Wiki, Fandom](https://walkingdead.fandom.com/wiki/Season_11_%28TV_Series%29)
9. [The Walking Dead Season 11: Showrunner Angela Kang on What the Final Season Has in Store for Fans, Rotten Tomatoes Editorial](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/the-walking-dead-season-11-showrunner-angela-kang-on-what-the-final-season-has-in-store-for-fans/)
10. [The Walking Dead season 11 Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-walking-dead/season-11/)
11. [The Walking Dead: Season 11 Ratings, TV Series Finale](https://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/the-walking-dead-season-11-ratings/)
12. [Netflix and AMC Global Media Announce Global Streaming Licensing Agreement for All Series in AMC's 'The Walking Dead' Universe, About Netflix](https://about.netflix.com/en/news/netflix-and-amc-global-media-announce-global-streaming-licensing-agreement-for-all-series-in-amcs-the-walking-dead-universe)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Fictional worlds and series reference apparatus › Episode lists, seasons, and broadcast lifecycle › Season guides and per-season series articles*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license