The Walking Dead was launching its final season, season 11. A zombie show that has achieved cult status. That translates in a lot of super fans, yet viewership had been in steady decline for years.

The final season gave us the opportunity to go out with a bang. Our first objective was reaching those super fans, those that kept watching no matter what, and getting them involved. Making sure they were aware of the start of the final season.

Secondly, we also needed to get those that tuned out involved again. Making sure they got that FOMO feeling for the final season of the Walking Dead.

To launch the final season of the Walking Dead Fox Belgium invited die-hard fans to a unique, one-off event: The Walking Premiere. Organizing a contest, we selected the biggest fans to watch the new season’s first episode at a desolate venue (an abandoned military complex) in Vilvoorde. Dressed as Walkers, they experienced the Last Walk - quite literally – with larger-than-life intensity, as they walked behind a giant driving screen that was broadcasting the highly anticipated episode.

When you look at the target audience for The Walking Dead it’s mainly people (male and female aged from 35 to 49) with a rich imagination that love to get lost in a fantasy world. The Walking Dead is/was a moment to take a break and escape reality 11 seasons long.

We started from the insight, a final season of Walking Dead, also means it’s the final aimless walk for all these zombies (unless a human prey is involved). They are what made the series iconic while often just strolling around, they were always able to steal the show. Now was the time to let our fantasy lovers flip the script and be part of this final walk.

Creating a unique brand experience that would connect with super fans and get those that tuned out involved once more.

We organized an activation on social media, bannering and on the FOX Belgium TV channel with a call to action to subscribe to our event and to see the first episode of the final season with a unique experience. The reactions were huge: 13k fans entered after 24h. Two weeks later the event took place, we notified 150 die-hard fans right in advance to join us at a dressed-up abandoned military complex in Vilvoorde the night of the premiere. Walkers were welcoming guests and make-up artists were present to make everyone as bloody as a Walking Dead premiere requires. When the episode started, our gigantic moving screen of 30m2 started moving, just like all the Walkers behind it to see the beginning of the end of The Walking Dead.

To achieve our overall objective of increase live tune in, we needed our fans. 13.000 of them signed up in less than 24h, after which we invited 150 of them to our event, asking to bring their best inner zombie. The experience overflowed social media with content for everyone to see.

Next, we utilized the after-movie to create some FOMO for those that tuned out, spreading it on social and even the press picked it up, generating just shy of 1 million in free press.

End-result? The live-tune in for the first episode within our target group (35-49) was up by 245,1% compared to the previous season launch. And to top it off it was the third most watched Walking Dead episode in Belgium in the last 3 years (final episodes always score bigger).

And a nice bonus, those that tuned back in, are still watching The Walking Dead today.