Robert Kirkman says Outcast is scarier than The Walking Dead

Last Updated on July 31, 2021

The next venture from Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman is Outcast, a Cinemax series also based on a comic. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, he made some very intriguing statements comparing the two shows:

Walking Dead is such a visceral, physical threat, and with Outcast, it’s an inward threat. It’s not a smart show, because I don’t ever want to do a smart show, but it is somewhat cerebral to think about things that are inside people, and dealing with the struggles of people who aren’t the people they’re supposed to be. The stories that we’re telling are very different.

It’s not a road show like The Walking Dead. There’s not a lot of traveling or things like that. The town of Rome, West Virginia, is very much its own character in the show, and the community that’s built there is kind of what makes it so terrifying to think about all these people that know each other’s secrets. But there’s this element in this town that is changing them, that’s making them different people, that’s making them a threat. Your friends and neighbors and loved ones can be your greatest enemy at the turn of a dime, and it’s not because they’re mindless monsters — they’re a cunning, manipulative, very dangerous creature that is suddenly in your midst. It’s a scarier show.

He also said that, like The Walking Dead, "It’s unlike anything else on television… When you sit down to watch an episode, you don’t really know what’s going to happen." I'm not sure I'm sold on his conviction that it's not a "smart" show, because I feel like that's something that television should be striving for these days, but at least he doesn't have any pretentions about his work.

And while The Walking Dead is certainly more of a drama than an out-and-out horror show, I'm intrigued to see if Outcast holds up to his promise of being scarier, which is certainly always a good thing.

Outcast, which has already been renewed for a second season:

tells the story of Kyle Barnes, who has been plagued by possession since he was a child. Now, with the help of the Reverend Anderson, a preacher with personal demons of his own, Kyle embarks on a journey to find answers and regain the normal life he lost. But what Kyle discovers could change his fate — and the fate of the world — forever.

The ten episode first season stars Patrick Fugit, Philip Glenister, Kip Pardue, Reg E. Cathey, Julia Crockett, Allison Barnes, David Denman, Melinda McGraw, Grace Zabriskie, Catherine Dent, Brent Spiner, Lee Tergesen, and Wrenn Schmidt. The pilot will officially air on Cinemax on June 3rd. Check out the first episode, directed by Adam Wingard, in full below!