Fear the Walking Dead charts rise of zombie outbreak

A fresh look at The Walking Dead's zombie apocalypse debuts this weekend, with Fear the Walking Dead sliding its particular lens westward and focusing on family drama.

"It's a companion series," star Kim Dickens told CBC News during a recent break in shooting on the show's Vancouver set.

"It's gonna be in the same universe, but it's going to have its own real personality. I think it will be as compelling. I think it actually may be even more suspenseful and a bit more scary in the beginning," she said, citing the spin-off's slow-burn approach.

Dickens and Cliff Curtis portray the show's central pair, a high school counselor and teacher (respectively) who are dating and struggling to merge their families, which include teenage children from previous relationships.

Georgia-set The Walking Dead introduced its main character Rick Grimes quickly and thanks to an injury that immediately put him into a coma for weeks promptly inserted him into a world already transformed by zombies.

On the other hand, Los Angeles-set Fear the Walking Dead aims to chart the creeping paranoia and more gradual disintegration of a major city amid a mysterious, rapidly spreading virus.

Fear the Walking Dead

9 years ago

Duration 2:14

Cast members of the Walking Dead spin-off series discuss the Vancouver-shot show

Because the show is debuting to a built-in fanbase, "the most exciting thing is that they know the rules that (we) the characters don't know," noted cast member Elizabeth Rodriguez.

Regardless, "they're going to be in a for a great surprise."

Watch Dickens, Rodriguez and co-stars Mercedes Mason and Lorenzo James Henrie discuss the show in the video above.

Fear the Walking Dead debuts Sunday on AMC.