The Walking Dead fans may have watched and discussed 11 seasons of villains, competing groups, and devastating deaths, but another zombie series deserves more attention than it gets, and Stephen King recommended it on social media. King watches and loves a lot of horror movies, which of course makes sense given the beloved scary stories he’s penned over his career. Since he knows great characters, emotional storylines, and how to separate cheesy villains from genuinely chilling ones, fans always trust his judgment.

The Walking Dead has been criticized countless times, whether viewers are discussing the pace, character decisions, or deaths they don’t believe should have happened. However, it’s often considered the golden standard of zombie TV. King’s recommendation is worth checking out and is an even more memorable show than The Walking Dead.

Stephen King Loved The Netflix Zombie Show Black Summer And It’s More Compelling Than The Walking Dead

Stephen King is a huge fan of the Netflix series Black Summer and tweeted about it in 2019. He wrote:

King continued:

“No long, fraught discussions. No endless flashbacks, because there’s no back story. No grouchy teens. Dialogue is spare. Much shot with a single handheld camera, very fluid.”

While there are many excellent zombie movies, countless films and TV shows seem to tell the exact same story. As King pointed out, Black Summer stands out because the show skips the boring conversations, flashbacks, and corny adolescent drama of several other TV shows about the zombie apocalypse.

A spinoff of the TV series Z Nation, Black Summer follows Rose (Jamie King), who is searching for her daughter Anna (Zoe Marlett) six weeks since the apocalypse started. The show stands out because it places the main characters right in the center of the action instead of showing viewers how the zombies started terrorizing and infecting others. That’s been seen too many times and can be dull, repetitive, and expected. Throughout Black Summer seasons 1 and 2, Rose continues on this path while working with others to survive this horrifying scenario.

Black Summer is even more interesting and action-packed than The Walking Dead, which has fantastic season finales, strong character development, and a pace that rarely lets up. However, AMC’s zombie drama disappointed fans time and time again. Several viewers felt that season 6, in particular, was slow and boring. Black Summer gives viewers enough time to get to know the characters, but most of the screentime is devoted to them moving quickly, making plans, and solving the next problem. It’s a quick, no frills kind of show, which is what King appreciates about it. King was also a fan of the zombie series The Returned, which has a very different tone than Black Summer.

When comparing the zombies on Black Summer and The Walking Dead, it’s possible to argue that the former’s creatures are more realistic. The series focuses more on the logistics that the characters have to figure out rather than big, bad villains. While of course Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Negan is a stand-out villain, it’s almost possible to imagine the events of Black Summer actually happening, which makes it more chilling.

Black Summer Was Canceled Before Season 3

Black Summer was canceled after two seasons, despite being popular with fans and earning an 85% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. In January 2024, What’s On Netflix reported that Netflix decided to end the beloved show about zombies. However, viewers had assumed that the show wouldn’t come back for a while. When a fan asked John Hyams about a season 3 in April 2023, he tweeted, “Nah.”

Fans were upset about the decision and shared their thoughts on Reddit. Redditor @chantsnone wrote:

“The way a zombie show should be done. I loved it.”

Redditor @alwaysmyfault wrote:

“definitely bummed. Really liked the world and the characters, and was looking forward to seeing how they picked up after the cliffhanger ending.”

Unfortunately, Black Summer didn’t get nearly as many seasons as The Walking Dead, and the latter has several spinoffs that fans can enjoy. Still, many felt that the Netflix series delivered consistently dramatic scenes and a poignant, scary, and emotional look at one character’s hope to find her daughter and survive the unimaginable.