The Walking Dead: Norman Reedus’ Wife Cast for New Spin-Off? Reedus Responds, Then Deletes Response

Norman Reedus responds to rumors that he pressured producers of his The Walking Dead spinoff series into casting his wife, Diane Kruger. The Walking Dead first premiered on AMC in 2010 and has run for 11 seasons. Debuting to massive critical acclaim, the show has gone on to become one of the largest horror franchises in the world, with six total spinoff series so far. The series finale of The Walking Dead, entitled “Rest in Peace,” is set to hit AMC on November 20.

As The Walking Dead has come closer and closer to the end over the past few months, several upcoming spinoff series have been announced to keep the undead franchise alive. Back in September 2020, The Walking Dead showrunners Angela Kang and Scott M. Gimple announced that they planned to create a spinoff series focused on two fan-favorite characters: Daryl (Reedus) and Carol (Melissa McBride). In April of this year, however, McBride exited the project, as the series was set to be filmed in Europe, which made it logistically untenable for her. The spinoff was then re-worked to solely star Reedus as Daryl. Ealier this month, it was revealed by Reedus that the name of this spinoff series would be Daryl Dixon, and that the show would be set in France.

In a now-deleted Instagram post (via ComicBook.com), Reedus responds to rumors that he had been pressuring the Daryl Dixon producers to cast his wife in the spinoff series. The post featured a screenshot of an email Reedus received from tabloid magazine The National Enquirer, which asked him for a comment on the rumors, and alleged that the actor himself had said including Kruger in the cast “will be a perfect opportunity for him to keep his family together on location.” Reedus was asked by The National Enquirer if he had “no reaction,” to which he replied the following:

At this point not really. Last time the[y] wrote about me they said i was missing. Lost while hiking thru the congo.

Could Diane Kruger Still End Up Starring In Daryl Dixon?

Kruger commented on the post with four ‘crying laughing’ emojis, indicating just how ridiculous she found the claim. Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Reedus’ The Walking Dead co-star who plays Negan, also commented on the post, writing “Hahahaha! F*ckin dummies everywhere. (Cept Congo).” Despite these rumors, no one other than Reedus has been officially confirmed to appear in Daryl Dixon. Recently, Andrew Lincoln (Rick Grimes) was spotted in Paris, sparking speculation that Rick might appear in the spinoff series. It has also been speculated that McBride might make an appearance, but there has been no confirmation as of yet.

Though the rumor seems to be completely ridiculous according to Reedus and Kruger, it isn’t out of the question that Reedus would want to keep his family (Kruger and their four-year-old daughter, Nova) close by while filming. McBride cited family as one of the reasons she would be unable to shoot a series for a long period of time in Europe; even Lincoln, who was The Walking Dead‘s major star for several years, left the series in order to spend more time with his family. Shooting a lengthy series is difficult on actors for many reasons, but largely because of how long it can keep them from their loved ones. Though it seems Reedus wasn’t putting pressure on the Daryl Dixon producers, Kruger may still be a part of the series sometime down the line, the same way Morgan’s wife Hilarie Burton guest-starred in The Walking Dead as Negan’s wife Lucille.