The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon showrunner David Zabel comments on whether Daryl (Norman Reedus) and Carol (Melissa McBride) will ever be a couple. After the conclusion of The Walking Dead, Reedus’ character returned for his own spinoff show in 2022, which takes place in France. Carol shows up in The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon season 1 finale, and she’s poised to play an even greater role in season 2, subtitled The Book of Carol, as she attempts to reunite with her friend.

In a recent interview with SFX Magazine (via GamesRadar+), Zabel shuts the door on a Daryl and Carol romance in The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon. According to the showrunner, introducing a Daryl and Carol romance storyline would feel like the “obvious” TV path for the two characters, and it’s not a path he’s keen to take. Zabel doesn’t, however, rule out a romance between Daryl and Isabelle (Clémence Poésy). Check out Zabel’s comment below:

“The obvious thing to do, and the easier thing to do would be, ‘Okay, now they’re falling in love and they’re a couple.’ But I always felt like that would be a mistake , because it would feel like you were going into the TV book of tricks. To me, there was never a question that [their connection] was something other than what it is, and what it seems to want to be, and why it works so well.”

“There are moments of friction [between Daryl and Isabelle], but there are obviously moments of mutual interest, and more than friendship that seems to be developing. Norman and I talked about this, that we wanted to draw a mature, adult relationship between a man and a woman and see where it went. Let’s just put these two characters, who are very different in very interesting, intriguing ways, force them together by the story facts, and then see what happens. What happened in season one was that you could see a connection forming, for sure.

“We didn’t manufacture that but we left room for it. A lot of season two is about the development of that and where that relationship goes, and that little surrogate family of Isabelle, Daryl and Laurent.”

A Daryl & Carol Romance In The Walking Dead Universe Is A Bad Idea

Why Norman Reedus & Melissa McBride’s Characters Are Better Off As Friends

There’s nothing wrong with a good love story. In fact, romantic storylines have served as the emotional backbone for some of the best shows and movies of all time. For some characters, however, platonic love is ultimately the more powerful and interesting option, and such is the case with Daryl and Carol.

While romance certainly seemed like it was on the table for the two characters in the past during the earlier seasons of The Walking Dead, it does feel as if that ship has sailed as The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol approaches. By now, audiences have grown to love these two characters and the bond of friendship they currently have. Making things romantic now, after so many years, would probably end up feeling forced, and it could prove to be a divisive change.

What’s more, purely platonic love is a surprisingly rare dynamic between male and female characters in the entertainment landscape, and it’s worth preserving this with Daryl and Carol. Even if two characters start off as friends in a series, the relationship often becomes romantic in later seasons as writers and showrunners try to take these characters to new places. Daryl and Carol can both certainly have their own romantic storylines moving forward in The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, but it might be for the best if their friendship is left alone.