AMC Settles Nine-Year Walking Dead Profits Lawsuit for $120 Million

AMC has agreed to pay $120 million to settle a long-running lawsuit brought by Walking Dead co-creator Robert Kirkman and fellow executive producers Glen Mazzara, David Alpert, Charles Eglee, and Gale Anne Hurd. The group first sued back in 2017, arguing the network had shortchanged them on profit participation tied to the flagship series and its early spinoff, Fear the Walking Dead.

It's been a winding road to this point. A judge actually ruled against the plaintiffs back in 2022, and the case looked headed for an October 2026 trial before both sides came to terms. Under the settlement, AMC will pay $85 million up front, with the remaining $35 million due by the end of January 2027 — a figure in the same neighborhood as the roughly $200 million payout the network gave showrunner Frank Darabont over a similar claim, which reportedly helped keep Kirkman's side in the fight.

The saga isn't fully closed: Fear the Walking Dead co-creator Dave Erickson still has a separate suit against AMC pending. But for a franchise that turned Kirkman's black-and-white Image Comics series into one of TV's most valuable properties, wrapping up the original profits fight closes a legal chapter nearly as long-running as the comic itself.

Original reporting: The Beat.