AMC renews The Walking Dead for Season 3

Good news for fans of AMC’s The Walking Dead television series. The network has renewed the series for a third season, after its record-breaking second season premiere, according to THR.

Last week’s 90-minute Season 2 premiere of The Walking Dead shattered basic cable ratings, drawing 4.8 million viewers in the 18-49 demographic, and 4.2 million adults 25-54.

Adapted from Robert Kirkman’s comic book series by Frank Darabont, The Walking Dead stars Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes, a former police officer and now the leader of a rag-tag group of survivors of an unexplained zombie apocalypse. The 13-episode second season is being split in two parts, taking a break for the holidays after six installments and then returning on February 12, 2012. The series also stars Jon Bernthal as Shane Walsh, Sarah Wayne Callies as Lori Grimes, Laurie Holden as Andrea, Jeffrey DeMunn as Dale Horvath, Steven Yeun as Glenn, Chandler Riggs as Carl Grimes, IronE Singleton as T-Dog, Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon, Melissa Suzanne McBride as Carol Peletier, Madison Lintz as Sophia Peletier, and James Allen McCune as Jimmy.

The Walking Dead has also spawned a post-show recap series, called Talking Dead, which is hosted by Nerdist’s Chris Hardwick, as well as a board game and line of action figures. Fox International Channels premiered Walking Dead this past weekend on networks in Africa, Europe, Asia, Latin America, and in the Middle East where ratings broke pay TV ratings records worldwide. More than 10 million viewers in 122 countries tuned in to watch the Season 2 premiere.

The show could also be creating a new muse for fan filmmakers, such as the web series Dead Road, which you can find out more about RIGHT HERE.