As society collapses and the dead return to feast, the line between friend and foe blurs in a battle for survival. Here is the list of best zombie shows and movies to watch now. Because in the aftermath of a world overrun by zombies, every breath is a victory and every moment could be the last.
10. Zombieland {2009}(imdb-7.5)
Featuring an equal amount of laughs and gore, this star-studded classic features four survivors as they make their way toward a rumored safe haven in Los Angeles. Perhaps most memorable is Columbus’ (Jesse Eisenberg) strict list of survival rules and zombie-killing strategies, which I am definitely keeping on the back burner…you know, just in case.
9. 28 days later {2003} (imdb-7.5)
A classic zombie film that set the zombie standard for movies to come, 28 Days Later is one of the earliest examples of the running zombie variant (i.e., the best kind). What’s so terrifying about this infection is where it came from—developed by military scientists who were trying to create an inhibitor to pacify violent criminals, it yielded opposite results. Any infected individual is driven into a state of perpetual homicidal rage, manically driven only to kill or infect any uninfected persons they encounter.
8. One cut of the dead {2017} (imdb-7.6)
This ingenious Japanese horror-comedy tells the tale of an ill-fated film crew who, while shooting a low-budget zombie movie in a decrepit WWII-era setting, are set upon by hordes that are actually undead.
One Cut of the Dead is a multi-faceted love letter to the genre, with a great script and some lovely, understated performances hiding amongst the grue.
7. Train to Busan{2016} (imdb-7.6)
It revolves around a man and his estranged daughter who become trapped on a speeding train during a rapidly spreading zombie outbreak in South Korea. Blood and gore aside, it’s also packed with a lot of heart as the family tries to mend their broken relationship whilst fighting for survival—tears will most definitely ensue.
6. Dawn of the dead{1978} (imdb-7.8)
George Romero’s classic consumer satire about a group of survivors hiding out from a zombie apocalypse in a shopping mall has only grown more potent, more sharp, and more ferocious with age. This, the middle of Romero’s original zombie trilogy, is the most vibrant of his undead works and also the most humorous. It has a peculiar but successful sense of pace, just a beat behind where you think it should be, which keeps the audience off-center and puts them in the position of the human leads, who are biding time waiting for the outbreak to subside.
5. Night of the living dead{1968} (imdb-7.8)
Romero’s independently produced phenomenon stars Duane Jones and Judith O’Dea as survivors hiding out from aggressive zombies in a secluded farmhouse. Along with White Zombie, Night of the Living Dead set the parameters for the genre. Romero unknowingly invented an entire cinematic form (not to mention his own career) with this stylish and brutal work.
4. Shawn of the dead{ 2004} (imdb-7.9)
Proof that comedy and zombies can co-exist, this hilarious zombie spoof (or “rom-zom-com,” as it dubs itself) takes the viewpoint of a man who feels dead inside—that is, before the zombie apocalypse even started. To him, these zombies are mere pests that are getting in the way of his drinking at the local pub and making up with his girlfriend.
3. The returned (imdb-8.1)
This French show centers on a small mountain town that spirals into chaos after people they knew to be dead magically come back to life, with no memory of being dead or how much time has passed. While these “undead” don’t ooze or eat brains, they do have weirdly voracious appetites, enjoy standing around in packs, and have body wounds that don’t exactly heal like they should. In addition to some stunning cinematography, the silent suspense that builds in seemingly subtle events (i.e., a slowly draining reservoir, animals killing themselves, etc.) is just as creepy—if not more—than straightforward slasher scares.
2. The walking dead (imdb-8.1)
Season 10 is newly released on Netflix, as well as its nine seasons that are all currently ready to be binged. Serving up horror, tears, laughs, and more with each episode, the show follows a group of survivors fighting their way through the treacherous, zombie-infested remains of what was once the United States.
1. Kingdom (imdb- 8.3)
The story follows the Prince of Joseon, who attempts to investigate the “mysterious illness” plaguing the King, only to realize he’s turned into a freaking zombie! As all zombie infections do, it spreads, and he finds himself caught in the middle of a deadly epidemic, all the while trying to stop his political opponents from seizing the throne. It’s the political thriller-zombie horror fusion you never knew you needed.