NEW YORK - AMC network says "The Walking Dead" began its second season with a vengeance, delivering 7.3 million viewers for Sunday's premiere telecast.

AMC reported Monday that the zombie drama went on to boost its total viewership to 11 million viewers for the night's three airings of the episode.

This eclipsed the year-ago audience for the series, which emerged as a surprise hit by averaging 5.2 million viewers weekly during that first season.

Based on the popular comic book of the same name, "The Walking Dead" depicts the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse confronted by a group of survivors outside Atlanta. Its cast includes Andrew Lincoln, Jon Bernthal and Sarah Wayne Callies.