What Lies Ahead premiere written and filmed would begin after the events of Season 1, although a brief flashback scene of Shane and Lori witnessing the fall of Atlanta from a distance would appear during the season. At PaleyFest 2011, it was announced that the second season of "The Walking Dead" would mainly be produced outside the city limits of Atlanta, Georgia. Most of the principal photography for "What Lies Ahead" took place in unincorporated Henry County, Georgia on June 5–9, 2011, using a stretch of Georgia State Route 20 that was closed to traffic for the purpose. On June 8, 2011, the
What Lies Ahead zombies with a rock. A six-part internet series was broadcast on AMC on October 3, 2011. It showed the events before the zombie outbreak from the perspective of a woman named Hannah, who appeared in the first episode. On the same day, a screening of "What Lies Ahead" commenced at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles. After the premiere of the episode, a live after-show titled "Talking Dead" was broadcast, hosted by Chris Hardwick. This is one of the last episodes of "The Walking Dead" to feature Darabont as an executive producer and the showrunner. In July 2011 he stepped