Just a couple of days ago, Frank Darabont was on–hand with the rest of the cast and crew of AMC’s hit zombie series, The Walking Dead. But it would now appear that false smiles were presented as things were apparently not going as well as they seemed.

Deadline is reporting that Darabont has stepped down as showrunner on the series, and it seems as though his sometimes strict methods could be a contributing factor. If you’ll recall, back when season 1 of the show was just about to end, it looked as though Darabont had fired the entire writing staff and was planning to use freelancers for season 2. We later heard from Robert Kirkman, executive producer and creator of the comic from which the show is based, who said that there was a staff and the firings were a bit fabricated at the time.

Some seem to think that because Darabont, who directed The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile, and has three Oscar nominations to his name, is so used to directing movies, he wasn’t able to adjust to fast–paced world of TV. Not only was he showrunner and creator of The Walking Dead, but he was also an executive producer, writer on multiple episodes, and director of the pilot.

It’s unclear if this means Darabont will be exiting the show completely—it’s said that there are talks going on to keep him involved in some way—but what is clear is this a shocking turn of events and probably not good for the series. Season 2 of the series is still on schedule, and is still set to debut on October 16th.

Time will tell, but losing someone with the talents that Darabont possesses can never be a good thing. Let’s hope he’s able to remain involved somehow.

Thoughts?