The world of The Walking Dead is overrun by flesh-eating zombies ,, but there’s a good chance they’ll all eventually discontinue being a threat. It’s no secret that the name of The Walking Dead is a double meaning, and as explained onscreen by Rick Grimes, too refers to the human survivors of the undead apocalypse. Still, the zombies, or baby-walkers as they’re often called, frisk a major role in the story, as it’s pretty much absurd to try and move on as a human society while they’re still hiding about.

However, as the late George Romero‘s movies started to explore a little as they get along, zombies, by nature, aren’t an eternal difficulty. They’re dead mass after all, and continue to decay and separate the longer they deplete shuffling around looking forward to snacks. Well, unless they’re the Olympic-caliber sprinters found in Zack Snyder’s Dawn of the Dead remake, but The Walking Dead’s zombies are of the classic Romero variety.

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So, many supporters might be wondering, will The Walking Dead’s zombies ever actually “die, ” for lack of a better word? It turns out that the answer to that is actually yes, although it’s probably gonna take quite a long time.

According to past interrogations with both The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman and former showrunner Glen Mazzara, the zombies occupying the franchise’s post-apocalyptic world will indeed one day “die, ” kind of. Their death will come in the form of continuing to decay and deteriorate until they literally fall apart, and are thus no real threat to anyone. The thing is, it’s unclear how long that will take, and there’s likewise the matter of new zombies being turned, which would of course just be beginning their crumble clocks. Multiple times have guided since the premiere of The Walking Dead, and while some deteriorated Walkers have been seen, there’s still more than enough to populate the picture and its spinoff Fear the Walking Dead.

With that in mind, it’s likely there will still be lot of zombies to go around as both appearances progress into future seasons, perhaps for many years to come. As mentioned, new zombies will likewise continue to be created, so even though they are a turning point is reached in the battle against the undead, it won’t only be an instance of rapid zombie “death.” Instead, the mutate will come gradually, over extended periods. Not that the downfall of Walkers will suddenly impel The Walking Dead’s world safe again, at least as long as people like Negan – or at least his former self – are still hungry for capability and resources.

More: Why The Walking Dead Really Doesn’t Use The Word “Zombie”

Read more: screenrant.com