It's only aired two episodes thus far, but Fear The Walking Dead has already encountered major criticism for its seeming to only kill off black characters.

The Apocalypse Hits Closer To Home

So far in the show, of characters who had speaking roles, two major deaths have occurred-Nick's (Frank Dillane) drug dealer, Calvin (Keith Powers) was shot and later killed after being hit by a car twice while in his zombified form, and Madison (Kim Dickens) and Travis' (Cliff Curtis) boss Artie (Scott Lawrence) got his head bashed in when his turned body tried to attack Madison and Tobias (Lincoln A. Castellanos).

One major black character's fate is still not determined-Alicia's (Alycia Debnam-Carey) boyfriend Matt (Maestro Harrell)--but things aren't looking good for him since he is suffering from intense flu-like symptoms and has a massive bite on his neck.

Are Fans Looking Forward To 'FTWD?'

Because of these deaths, fans have begun to criticize the shoe for taking a similar path as The Walking Dead-which has had a reputation for shocking deaths over the years, with some of the most violent and heartbreaking reserved for black male characters, including T-Dog (IronE Singleton), Bob (Lawrence Gilliard Jr), Tyreese (Chad Coleman) and Noah (Tyler James Williams).

Now, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, showrunner Dave Erickson is defending the decision to kill off these characters, maintaining that their race has nothing to do with their fates.

"When we were writing the pilot, it wasn't something that came up in conversations in the room or with the network. Ultimately, it came down to when we were casting those parts, we didn't know who was going to live, who would die or how those stories would arc out or not arc out," he says. "For us, it was about casting that felt reflective of the community and getting the best actor and that was the final determining factor."

"...It wasn't as though we were writing those characters and then casting those characters with an intention of, 'This is going to be the death scene for this episode,'...I realize it's clearly become an issue and it's something we are mindful of," he added. "I wouldn't want to go back and recast a character just to avoid...If it doesn't feel true to the character or the relationship-the relationship with Alicia and Matt or Calvin and Nick-it's really about the reality of the world that we're trying to inhabit and trying to have the best actors portray those parts. When you're dealing with a show where you have a cast that is as diverse as ours is, it's inevitable that characters of color are going to get bit and are going to turn or die...We want to tell the story in the best way we can and want the best actors to play those parts. It would have been a mistake to go with Anglo actors for those particular roles because I don't think that's honest to the worlds of the show."

However, fans are still criticizing the move to kill the characters they did, with comments on the article accusing the show's producers and writers or just trying to cover their actions.

"These people are full of s-t," one wrote.

"Wow. Those were really weak excuses to killing (the boyfriend is gone) every Black character we have been introduced to. You cast the best actors? So the black are only talented enough/deserving of maybe, 5, mins of dialogue, and the most graphic death scenes?" another added.

Fear The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on AMC.

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Fear The Walking Dead, AMC, Television