"Fear the Walking Dead" is set to premiere in a few weeks on AMC, and while many are aware that the spin-off series to "The Walking Dead" will detail the events that took place before the zombie apocalypse, some are wondering how it will be different from the original series. 

In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, showrunner Dave Erickson said that the characters in the companion series will be very important, and that viewers will have a bit of time to meet them and see them in their normal lives before the zombie outbreak happens. 

Erickson said that ultimately, "Fear the Walking Dead" is a family drama, and that one of the things that he and series creator and executive producer Robert Kirkman talked about in the beginning was that they are starting a little earlier in the apocalypse for the spin-off. 

"What that allowed us to do the pilot and season 1 is to establish our core family, establish the problems and the conflicts that they have, and really let that be the initial world that we live in," he told EW. 

The series, which is set in Los Angeles, focuses on a blended family composed of Madison (Kim Dickens), a high school guidance counselor who is a single mother to high-achieving and ambitious Alicia (Alycia Debnam-Carey) and Nick (Frank Dillane), who flunked out of college and is battling a drug problem. Madison is engaged to Travis (Cliff Curtis), a divorced teacher who shares custody of his son Chris (Lorenzo James Henrie) with his ex-wife Liza (Elizabeth Rodriguez). 

Three new photos of Madison, Alicia, and Travis from upcoming episodes have also been released on EW, all of them showing the three characters looking pensive. 

Kirkman told EW that anything that viewers will learn from "Fear" will apply to the original series and vice versa. 

"So you are going to get to see that the characters learn that they're all infected in a much different way. But all the rules do apply and are the same. That will be some of the fun if you're watching both shows." Kirkman said.

"Fear the Walking Dead" is slated to premiere in August on AMC.