Though AMC Networks’ The Walking Dead flagship series may have aired its final episode last year, the zombie universe is anything but finished, with several spinoffs on the way.
Now, one of those spinoffs, The Walking Dead: Dead City, is set to premiere on Sunday, and AMC is ramping up the real-world promotion to bring old and new fans to the fictional universe.
With Dead City set in New York, The Walking Dead and AMC Networks partnered with iconic New York establishments this week to promote the upcoming spinoff.
Promotions kicked off on Wednesday in Midtown at a Dead City-themed coffee cart, with a coffee and New Yorker-designed cartoon sleeve giveaway for customers.
Additionally, at H&H Bagels on the Upper West Side, the first 200 customers got a free limited-time bagel: the Walker Wake-Up. Through June 18, fans of the show can buy the bagel sandwich at all three local locations.
At Joe’s Pizza in Times Square, the first 200 fans got two free slices and a merch giveaway, with a similar deal at the New York Hot Dog King Cart in the UES.
And with Lauren Cohan and Jeffery Dean Morgan reprising their characters of Maggie and Negan in the new series, the pair showed up at Katz’s Deli, where Adweek was on hand to see the festivities.
At the iconic location on the Lower East Side, known for its pastrami on rye and that one famous scene in When Harry Met Sally, fans got pastrami sandwiches, coleslaw and merchandise. (Hey, we’ll have what they’re having!) Several of the show’s walkers were spotted eating the New York staple. And Cohan and Morgan’s appearance led to confusion and delight among customers and tourists.
AMC representatives told Adweek the two busiest locations were Joe’s and Katz’s Deli, and that fans started lining up early in the morning for the 3 p.m. activation.
