“The Walking Dead” Uses Viral Marketing Zombies To Prank NYC

First it was the psychic in the coffee shop, then it was the demon baby terrorizing bystanders, now in anticipation of The Walking Dead coming back, the folks over at AMC prepared a frightful surprise for the citizens of New York City. Looks as though unsuspecting pedestrians have had run-ins with hungry walkers. Check out the video after the jump to see the hilarity ensue as zombies take over the city that never sleeps and give them more of a reason not to. Hit the jump to see the video.

It’s pretty awesome that advertising campaigns for shows and movies have moved away from just billboards and have decided to immerse their demographic in the worlds of the product. It’s a new form of participatory collaboration that’s working to get people excited and fun even if the pranks are at the expense of fans with good humor. The hidden camera angle really puts a good spin on people’s irrational fear of Subway Grates. Who doesn’t walk over them fearing they’ll collapse or a pipe will explode? Now you’ve got zombie’s reaching out to grab you as motivation to sprint quickly over.  The reactions in the video above are pretty priceless, especially the people who flailed away. And that kid is a little Michonne in the making, she had no fear as she looked at the zombies before sashaying away.

Maybe next time they should get Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon to participate and grab ankles?

The Walking Dead comes back this Sunday February 9th where we pick up on the devastation the Governor left behind. With the loss of regulars (but let’s face it, no one is a regular on a zombie show but the zombies), we’ll see some new faces from the world of Robert Kirkman’s comic.  Thank goodness for February signaling the end of the killer mid-season breaks. It’s great to see the gang back on screen.

Who’s excited to find out where the heck everyone is going in the aftermath of the last season?