The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live is a 2024 AMC limited series that reunites Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira as Rick Grimes and Michonne, six years after Lincoln’s character left the flagship show. It was created by Scott M. Gimple and Danai Gurira, with Gimple serving as showrunner. The six-episode series premiered February 25, 2024 on AMC and AMC+, and closes out the long-awaited reunion story of Rick and Michonne. It has since become the best-reviewed entry in the Walking Dead spin-off slate.
The series earned an 88% Tomatometer score from critics on Rotten Tomatoes (with a 76% audience score), higher than fellow spin-offs The Walking Dead: Dead City (80%) and The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon (71%). The critics’ consensus praised it as “a consistent treat for longtime fans.” As for a follow-up: AMC has not renewed the show for a second season as of this writing. It was conceived and marketed as a limited series, and Gimple has said the plan was “to keep it limited,” though he left the door open to seeing Rick and Michonne again in some other form down the line.
Quick Facts
| Title | The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live |
| Genre | Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi |
| Creators | Scott M. Gimple, Danai Gurira |
| Starring | Andrew Lincoln, Danai Gurira, Pollyanna McIntosh, Terry O’Quinn, Lesley-Ann Brandt |
| Composer | Sam Ewing (score produced by Bear McCreary) |
| Episodes | 6 |
| Premiere Date | February 25, 2024 (AMC / AMC+) |
| Critical Reception | 88% critics / 76% audience (Rotten Tomatoes) – highest-rated TWD spin-off |
| Season 2 Status | Not renewed as of this writing; conceived as a limited series |
| Where to Watch | AMC+ (also accessible as an add-on channel via Prime Video and Apple TV) |
Official Synopsis: A constantly changing world changes the love story between Rick and Michonne. Will they find themselves in a war against the living, or will they discover that they, too, are the walking dead? (From IMDb)
Who Actually Composed the Score?
This is worth clarifying carefully, because it’s easy to get wrong: the composer of The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live is Sam Ewing, not Bear McCreary. Ewing previously co-scored the final two seasons of the original The Walking Dead series alongside McCreary and has also scored Last Seen Alive, The Shed, and Beautiful Disaster. For this spin-off, Ewing became the sole credited composer.
Bear McCreary — the composer widely known for the original The Walking Dead, Battlestar Galactica, Outlander, and The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power — is credited as producing Ewing’s score for this series, effectively mentoring and overseeing the sound rather than writing it himself. It’s an easy mix-up because McCreary’s name and sound are so closely tied to the franchise, but the score itself is Ewing’s work.
Soundtrack Album
We could not verify a commercially released, track-by-track score album for The Ones Who Live at the time of writing. Excerpts of Ewing’s score, including the main title theme, have circulated online, but there’s no confirmed full digital or physical release to link to. We’ll update this section if that changes.
Where to Stream The Ones Who Live
All six episodes are available to stream on AMC+, which can also be accessed as an add-on channel through Prime Video, Apple TV, and Philo. Episodes can also be purchased digitally on Amazon Video, the Apple TV Store, and Fandango at Home. Check our Streaming hub for the latest availability near you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who composed The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live?
Sam Ewing composed the score. Bear McCreary, the franchise’s longtime composer, produced Ewing’s work on the series rather than composing it himself.
Will there be a season 2 of The Ones Who Live?
AMC has not renewed the series for a second season as of this writing. It was designed as a limited series, though showrunner Scott M. Gimple has not fully ruled out revisiting the characters in the future.
How was The Ones Who Live received by critics?
Very well. It holds an 88% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, the highest of any Walking Dead spin-off, with a 76% audience score.
Where can I watch The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live?
It’s available on AMC+, which can also be added as a channel through Prime Video, Apple TV, or Philo. It is not on Netflix.
Is there an official soundtrack album?
No commercially released soundtrack album has been confirmed as of this writing.
How many episodes does the series have?
Six episodes, which premiered on AMC and AMC+ starting February 25, 2024.
Related reading: Browse more TV Soundtracks, check our Streaming hub, or see what’s on Netflix.