''The Walking Dead': Robert Kirkman hints 5 more seasons

"The Walking Dead" is currently in its seventh season. The US television series is slated to return next month for the second part of season 7.

Digital Spy reports that "The Walking Dead" might have five more seasons if creator Robert Kirkman has his way. The entertainment site notes that the show’s rating in the United Kingdom remains high while ratings decline in the US.

Kirkman was on the podcast WTF with Marc Maron last year and somehow expressed his desire for the show to stay on air for 50 seasons.

The creator has also addressed questions concerning the show’s future in comic issue #154's letters section. "Look at it this way ... it took us 6 seasons to get to 100,” he said.

"It won't take us 6 years to get to 200 and that will take us to season ... TWELVE. And we'll STILL be ahead of the show at that point.”

CinemaBlend notices that Kirkman's ideas of how the show would end have changed over the years. The site also mentions that the show can run for five more years. However, some critics could not help but wonder if viewers would remain interested about the series until then.

Generally, viewers tend to lose interest at a TV show by the time it reaches a double-digit mark in terms of seasons.

Other "The Walking Dead" season 7 news suggests that when the show returns, viewers may expect a different format from the first half of the current instalment. Those who have seen the first part of season 7 would agree that it mainly dedicated each episode to a particular character.

"I will say the back eight's vibe is very different from the first eight's vibe," showrunner Scott Gimple has promised. Gimple also assured fans that the finale episode of season 7 will be very different.

The second half of "The Walking Dead" season 7 debuts in the US on Feb. 12. It is yet to be confirmed if it will air in Australia on the same day.