The second season of "The Walking Dead" is currently filming in Atlanta, which means we only have a few more months to wait before AMC's hit series returns.
One person who's certainly going to be busy between now and the Season Two premiere is "The Walking Dead" creator Robert Kirkman, who serves as executive producer and writer on the television series, while also scripting the monthly adventures of Rick Grimes in the comic book that inspired the series.
Along with all of his responsibilities on "The Walking Dead," Kirkman is also pairing up with veteran creator (and Deadpool co-creator) Rob Liefeld for The Infinite, a new comic book series about a man who travels back in time to enlist his younger self in a battle against a supervillain. MTV News managed to slip a few questions to Kirkman about the next season of "The Walking Dead" and The Infinite.
MTV NEWS: Filming is underway for Season 2 of "The Walking Dead" right now, so how far along are you? Is the premiere all set?
ROBERT KIRKMAN: Filming is definitely underway. I was just in Atlanta for a few days visiting the set and it's as hot as ever. The filming is now taking place in a top secret location in rural Georgia, far outside of Atlanta. We did some filming in Atlanta for the first part of our premiere episode of Season 2 and the set was basically attacked by people coming to watch the filming. It was much different from last year. It was really exciting — almost as exciting as the new book I'm debuting in August at Image Comics called The Infinite that I'm creating with artist Rob Liefeld. It's pretty cool. People should give it a shot.
MTV: Now that you've got a full season under your belt, what's changed in your approach to Season 2 of "The Walking Dead"? Are there things you learned from the first season and applied to the second?
KIRKMAN: Well, it's different for me because I'm actually in the writer's room this year, working closely with the writers and Frank [Darabont] to craft this season from start to finish — which has been a lot of fun. The main difference is that we've got more episodes this year, and we can tell a bigger, more involved story — and that's what we're doing!
MTV: One of the big scenes from the first season that really harkened back to the comic was Rick's arrival in Atlanta on horseback. Is there an effort to include a scene or two like that in the new season? Any chance you can drop a hint or two about what it will involve?
KIRKMAN: Yes. And no.
MTV: Tell me a little more about The Infinite, since it's clearly a big part of your life these days...
KIRKMAN: The Infinite is my next big comics project. It's about a freedom fighter named Bowen, who goes back in time, to present day to stop "The Infinite" before they can conquer the world in the future — and to do this he teams up with his younger self. it's like a buddy cop movie staring two versions of the same guy! It's a mind-bending sci-fi time travel epic! It's just like "The Walking Dead," only, instead of zombies... there aren't any zombies!
MTV: It may not have zombies, but it does have Rob Liefeld — who's sort of like a real-life superhero...
KIRKMAN: I've been wanting to work with Rob Liefeld for as long as I've been working in comics and we've done a little work together from time to time for both Marvel Comics and Image Comics, but this is the first time we've ever actually created something new together. Rob is such an amazing creator. He's responsible for Cable and Deadpool, Youngblood, Avengeline, the list goes on. Even lesser known concepts like Bloodstrike (which features zombie superheroes) have always been a big hit in the Kirkman household. With The Infinite we're really going all out and trying to create something cool that will hopefully stand the test of time. It's been an absolute blast to get to work with him.
MTV: One of the things that amazes me is that even with the tv series, I'm still seeing your name on bunches of comics crossing my desk these days. How are you balancing the television work and comics? Is it easy to switch gears between mediums like that?
KIRKMAN: I love to multitask, I suppose. I don't like waiting, and I get bored easily. I've been bouncing around with three to six projects at any given time since I first started writing professionally... a long time ago. It just so happens that now, one of those projects is a TV show. Switching gears is no big deal for me because I've always been jumping around, sometimes writing the most depressing scenes of The Walking Dead and the most upbeat superhero stuff in Invincible in the same day. Have I mentioned that I'm doing a new comic with Rob Liefeld called The Infinite that debuts in comic shops and digitally this August yet? Because I'm doing a new comic with Rob Liefeld called The Infinite that debuts in comic shops and digitally this August.
MTV: So you're working with Todd McFarlane on "The Walking Dead" toys, and with Rob Liefeld on The Infinite — thereby living the dream of every comics fan who spent time at a shop in the 1990s. Tell me a little about working with these guys, because they're pretty much the definition of industry veterans... What's the collaboration process like?
KIRKMAN: Todd is the goofiest guy you'll ever meet... and I think it's all an act to hide what a shrewd business man he is. But Todd's great, I love the guy. And those "Walking Dead" toys (for both the comic series and the show) are amazing! Rob Liefeld, simply (and nerdily) put, is my comic book lazarus pit. What I mean by that is, nobody loves comics more than him — and that's all comics, DC comics, Marvel comics, Image comics... everything. He loves talking about them, reading them, buying them, going to stores, local conventions... He loves talking to retailers, comics people... The guy lives and breathes comics, moreso than anyone I've ever known.
If I'm ever feeling beaten down or burnt out on our fine industry, one call to Rob and I'm suddenly excited about everything comics again. He's really a positive force for the industry. Working on The Infinite has been great. He's a fantastic collaborator and really provides a lot for me to work with. It's almost like a competition with him. I give him some ideas and he tries to one-up me, and often does. We'll be crafting some back story or I'll be telling him my plans for things and he'll just say "or this could happen" and 9 times out of 10, it's just an awesome twist I missed. I can't wait for people to see this book.
MTV: Any other "The Walking Dead" news you want to drop for everyone looking forward to Season Two?
KIRKMAN: [Laughs] Actually, I feel bad because I didn't give you enough top-secret info for "The Walking Dead" Season Two... so here's an extra tidbit: Rob Liefeld is playing THE GOVERNOR!
MTV: You heard it here first, folks!
"The Walking Dead" Season Two premieres this Fall on AMC. The Walking Dead comic book series hits shelves monthly. Robert Kirkman and Rob Liefeld's new comic book series, The Infinite, debuts in August.
What are you looking forward to in teh next season of "The Walking Dead"? what do you think about The Infinite? Let us know in the comment section or on Twitter! You can also follow me, Splash Page editor Rick Marshall, on Twitter!
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