Darabont leaving The Walking Dead!?!?!?

[carpetbeggar]

I want to hear what Kirkman has to say about all this. If he's confident things will be alright and gives the new "showrunner" the vote of confidence (which he will of course as I can't see him burying him while the show is still in production), then I will be OK with it. I would have hoped he at least had some input into who Darabont's replacement would be. When the AMC suits start playing games with Kirkman then that is when I will be really worried about the future of TWD as a TV entity. I kinda hope this is the end of anymore stories regarding TWD behind the scenes shenanigans as I don't want any more negativity lingering about leading up to and during the second season. I just want to be able to enjoy the season without wondering if it will be the last, if you know what I mean.

[krisvds]

AICN strikes back. http://www.aintitcool.com/node/50794 Another sad read. If this 'Quint's' report on how they treated him is true, and I see no reason why it shouldn't, AMC is being run by even bigger d*cks than I suspected.

[MinionZombie]

I want to hear what Kirkman has to say about all this. If he's confident things will be alright and gives the new "showrunner" the vote of confidence (which he will of course as I can't see him burying him while the show is still in production), then I will be OK with it. I would have hoped he at least had some input into who Darabont's replacement would be. When the AMC suits start playing games with Kirkman then that is when I will be really worried about the future of TWD as a TV entity. I kinda hope this is the end of anymore stories regarding TWD behind the scenes shenanigans as I don't want any more negativity lingering about leading up to and during the second season. I just want to be able to enjoy the season without wondering if it will be the last, if you know what I mean. I know exactly what you mean. Hearing about what's apparently been going on at a corporate level has been disheartening to say the least - I just hope that the show makers hang together because it sounds like they all love making the show and they all get on really well - which in itself produces the best products - so I dearly hope that, as you say, there's no more shit flung TWD's way. There shouldn't have been any in the first place though. Excellent article on AICN too - I totally agree with it - AMC needs a serious re-think on their approach (and managerial staff), as it sounds like there are some colossal twats in powerful positions making beyond-idiotic decisions.

[Sammich]

The first thing that AMC needs to do is fire every single one of the MBAs in the front office who did not work their way up from the mailroom. The MBA has to be the single most destructive force to U.S. industries. 99% of the time their only "qualification" is just an expensive fancy piece of paper they bought from a "school". They have little to no knowledge or respect of the product manufacturing process in the companies for which they are employed. The MBA view workers as expendable and often with contempt. There is nothing more infuriating as some brand new snot nosed kid from middle management showing up one day out of the blue to tell YOU how to do the job you have done for years, even though said dweeb has no clue as to how to do the job himself. They are nothing but psychopaths looking to do anything they can to further themselves at someone elses expense (quite often unjustly) and kiss the butt of the execs above them. If they are allowed continued free reign at AMC, after the current batch of successful shows run their course AMC is going to cry for a fed bailout. MBA = Moron, Backstabber, A$$kisser

[LoSTBoY]

MBA = Moron, Backstabber, A$$kisser I would have went with Morally Bankrupt Asslickers. I think AMC have been getting their etiquette lessions from Fox.

[Neil]

AICN strikes back. http://www.aintitcool.com/node/50794 Another sad read. If this 'Quint's' report on how they treated him is true, and I see no reason why it shouldn't, AMC is being run by even bigger d*cks than I suspected. Interesting read!

[AfterMovieDiner]

I really get a kick out of Darabont's work and whatever happened here it is really too bad and a shame. With the middle of the first series not exactly being strong and a lot of the story lines being rushed, them losing the writers and now Darabont... I personally don't hold out much hope for the future of The Walking Dead on TV. AMC obviously tried to run before they could even crawl and it scared the bejesus out of them. -- -------- Post added 22-Aug-2011 at 03:20 AM ---------- Previous post was 15-Aug-2011 at 10:21 AM ---------- Check out my full opinions on the first season of The Walking Dead and the news about season 2 on episode 5 of my podcast. Only mentioning because I thought the subject was relevant to the folks here use the links below. Thank you

[kidgloves]

Heres some numbers on the budget cuts. Not as bad as everyone thinks. After all, Hollywood deal-making is all about leverage, and the media is often used as a weapon in high-profile talks: When actors are looking for huge pay bumps, their demands often magically appear in print long before a deal is done in part because network and studio execs are hoping they'll be shamed by press accounts painting them as "greedy." The Darabont dust-up didn't involve any contract negotiations — it was all about budgeting, but there, too, AMC was at a disadvantage: On paper, its reported request that Dead reduce its budget from $3.4 million in season one (a number inflated by the high costs of the pilot and start-up costs) to around $2.8 million per episode in season two doesn't seem wholly unreasonable. (A report in the Los Angeles Times says the figure was even less: just $250,000 per hour.) But, as one exec notes, "It's a bitter pill to ask someone to swallow when you ask them to cut their budget and they're the No. 1 show among adults 18 to 49 ever in basic cable history." It doesn't matter that $2.8 million is a figure that would make most basic cable showrunners green with envy; to a creator like Darabont, it was a slap in the face, and his reps made sure post-dismissal stories painted him as a victim of bean counters. The whole article is a good read http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment...ead_break.html

[MinionZombie]

Heres some numbers on the budget cuts. Not as bad as everyone thinks. The whole article is a good read http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment...ead_break.html Well now I don't know who/what to believe and to what extent!

[bassman]

...to a creator like Darabont, it was a slap in the face, and his reps made sure post-dismissal stories painted him as a victim of bean counters. And AMC's reps paid this reporter to write the article.

[kidgloves]

And AMC's reps paid this reporter to write the article. So cynical Bass

[Ghoulman]

That's the suckish part about this as well as most things; it always comes down to perspective, personal values, and ideology where the real answer lies. This information certainly paints a significantly different picture than the first story, and one that I am more inclined to believe than the previous story, but that's just me.

[bassman]

Here's a nifty little interview with Darabont's replacement, Glen Mazzara, where he openly talks about the transition. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/liv...a-frank-233039 THR: Did you feel a need to put your imprint on the show and change something right away? Mazzara: No, I didn’t. I felt that what we had was working and that it was about providing stability. Where I had felt differently and/or felt that I could add something that didn’t really come up for a few episodes down the road. THR: Was splitting the season in two parts something that you were aware of? Mazzara: The season was always designed as two halves before a single word was written. I’ve read stuff on the Internet where people are saying, ‘The first half of the season is going to be Frank and the second half is going to be Glen. This doesn’t bode well.’ That’s all horseshit. I’ve been involved in every single episode; Frank has been involved in every episode to some degree creatively. [The split season theory] is not accurate. It’s always been designed as two halves for programming purposes because football is a monster and nobody wants to go up against my Giants. [Laughs.] He also goes on to say that Darabont is of course still one of the producers and many of the players on set are still actively talking with him.

[MinionZombie]

It's amazing how things constantly change appearances, even with just small bits of feedback from the folks actually working on the show ... who knows what to believe these days, eh?

[Ghoulman]

I hear ya Minion. I am now inclined to believe things aren't as bad as they appeared just a few short weeks ago. For one thing Nicotero is doing six webisodes which he wouldn't be doing if cash were tight. Also, TWD is AMC's highest rated, wholy-owned show which I highly doubt they would intentionally fuck up because that would be an alltime epic high in dumbfuckedness. Admitedly, I was as skeptical and negative as well when the dust up became public but now, AMC has my trust (where it should have been there all along) and they will keep it untill I see with me own two eyes that they have done something to loose that trust.