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It’s been 89 years since zombies first lurched into cinemas, and our fascination with them shows no signs of waning. They’ve undergone radical transformations since Bela Lugosi turned his victims into the undead in 1932’s *White Zombie*, which drew inspiration from a 1929 book on Haitian lore. But perhaps it’s this ability to evolve that keeps them so compelling.
Through countless reinventions, zombies have come to symbolize our fears of foreign cultures, the loss of personal power, communism, nuclear conflict, racial tensions, the civil rights movement, capitalism, pandemics, the space race, and above all, our deep-seated fear of one another. With hundreds of zombie films available, they’re not restricted to just horror. From dark anti-war messages to lighthearted comedies, here are 25 of our all-time favorite zombie movies from across the globe.
Note: For this list, we’re taking a broad approach to the term *zombie*. Included here are flesh-hungry monsters, Deadites, and “conversationalists” alongside victims of demonic possession, black magic, and the rage virus. Regardless of what the creators call them, if it looks and acts like a zombie, it’s fair game for inclusion.
1. *I Walked With A Zombie* (1943)
You might not expect it from the title, but Jacques Tourneur’s visually striking follow-up to his 1942 hit *Cat People* is deeply inspired by Charlotte Brontë’s *Jane Eyre*. The script, co-written by *The Wolf Man* screenwriter Curt Siodmak, shifts the tale to a Caribbean island where voodoo and colonialism are deeply ingrained in the culture. While not Hollywood’s first zombie movie, it was the first to treat its subject matter with earnest respect. Among all the films produced by the legendary Val Lewton, *I Walked With a Zombie* was reportedly his personal favorite.
2. *The Plague Of The Zombies* (1966)
Hammer Films, famous for its *Dracula*, *Frankenstein*, and *Mummy* series starring Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing, made a singular entry into the zombie genre that should not be overlooked. *The Plague of the Zombies* was the third of four Hammer films produced in rapid succession in 1965, often reusing the same sets. (The other three were *Dracula: Prince of Darkness*, *Rasputin—The Mad Monk*, and *The Reptile*.) Shot in vivid, high-quality Technicolor, it acts as a fascinating bridge between the Hollywood voodoo zombies of the ’30s and ’40s and the more gruesome reimaginings that would follow two years later.
3. *Night Of The Living Dead* (1968)
*George A. Romero* was just 28 when he changed the landscape of horror cinema with *Night of the Living Dead*. One of his most revolutionary choices was casting Duane Jones as Ben, the film’s honorable yet tragic protagonist. This was a stark departure from how Black men had been portrayed in horror films up until that point: either as mere background figures with no real agency or as menacing villains. In addition to his stellar performance, Jones—who had studied at the Sorbonne, spoke multiple languages, and earned a Communications M.A. from NYU while working on *Night of the Living Dead*—also significantly improved the script by rewriting his own lines. Furthermore, Jones had a major influence on the film’s iconic and shocking ending. While Romero initially considered a more hopeful conclusion, Jones pushed for the devastating finale we know today: Ben survives the zombie onslaught, only to be tragically shot by a white police officer.
4. *Deathdream* (1974)
After creating the horror-comedy *Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things* and before he helped shape the slasher genre with *Black Christmas*, Canadian filmmaker Bob Clark took a dark turn with his anti-war film *Deathdream*. Set in Florida, Clark’s movie is a unique twist on zombie lore, telling the haunting story of a family that falls apart when their son, killed in Vietnam, unexpectedly returns to their home hours after they’ve been informed of his death. Even if you're just in it for the zombies, *Deathdream* is worth watching—it features Tom Savini’s first zombie effects, which paved the way for the groundbreaking rotters in *Dawn of the Dead* and *Day of the Dead* in the years that followed.
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5. *The Living Dead At The Manchester Morgue* (1974)
This Spanish-Italian co-production is an unusual blend of gothic horror, science fiction, and gory zombie sequences, with a hint of 1970s eco-horror: the zombies are unintentionally created by a government experiment to eradicate crop-destroying insects using ultrasonic radiation. Known by 16 alternate titles across its international releases, whether you’ve seen it as *Let Sleeping Corpses Lie*, *Do Not Speak Ill of the Dead*, *Zombie 3*, or *Breakfast at the Manchester Morgue*, it’s a standout in the Eurozombie genre. It’s also one of Edgar Wright’s favorite zombie films; the marketing campaign for its U.S. release as *Don’t Open the Window* inspired Wright’s *Grindhouse* trailer, *Don’t*.
6. *Dawn Of The Dead* (1978)
*Night of the Living Dead* came out just a month before the MPAA rating system was introduced, so theaters had no restrictions on selling tickets to children, which they did—much to the horror of film critic *Roger Ebert*, who saw the film at a “kiddie matinee” full of unsupervised kids. When the ratings board previewed *Dawn of the Dead* a decade later, they had a powerful weapon at their disposal: the infamous *“X” rating*, typically reserved for adult films, which they handed to *Dawn* based solely on its extreme, gory violence. *The Dallas Times Herald* described it as “the most horrific, brutal, nightmarish descent into Hell ever put on the screen,” while *The New York Times* critic Janet Maslin famously walked out after 15 minutes. *Dawn of the Dead* still holds its impact today, though the gore is balanced by Romero’s dark humor and the fact that nearly everyone involved seemed to have a blast.
7. *Zombi 2* (1979)
When *Dawn of the Dead* premiered in Italy, it was re-edited by Dario Argento, re-scored by Italian prog rock band Goblin, and simply retitled *Zombi*. Thanks to a loophole in Italian copyright law allowing unauthorized sequels, Italian producers quickly seized the opportunity to cash in on *Zombi*'s success by producing an unofficial sequel, directed by Lucio Fulci. *Zombi 2* became infamous for its graphic gore and its gruesome, worm-infested zombies. The film also revived the use of black magic, a theme that had fallen out of favor in post-*Night of the Living Dead* zombie films. Its most unforgettable moment? A bizarre underwater showdown in which a zombie faces off against a live shark. Fulci refused to shoot the scene himself, so the stunt was left to a second unit, with underwater photographer Ramón Bravo donning zombie makeup and performing the dangerous stunt with a tiger shark that had been doped up and well-fed.
8. *Dead & Buried* (1981)
We can promise you’ve never seen a zombie film—or any film, for that matter—quite like *Dead & Buried*. Director Gary Sherman originally envisioned it as a black comedy, believing that infusing the film with humor would make the horror elements hit harder. However, the production company wasn’t a fan of this tone and requested a version with less comedy and more gore. The result is a hauntingly atmospheric, somber movie that blends grisly murder mystery elements with an unconventional take on zombification. The undead are primarily victims of brutal, grotesque murders, and young Stan Winston surely had a blast crafting the film’s famously disturbing effects, including a hyper-realistic mechanical dummy used in the film’s most notorious kill—a moment that helped land *Dead & Buried* on the UK’s banned “video nasties” list.
9. *Night Of The Comet* (1984)
Writer-director Thom Eberhardt has claimed that *Night of the Comet* isn’t a zombie film, but it’s tough to take that at face value when the cast—Catherine Mary Stewart and Kelli Maroney—and production designer John Muto all confirm that an earlier version of the script was titled *Teenage Comet Zombies* (a phrase that even appears in the movie itself). According to Stewart, Eberhardt and the producers had very different visions for the film. ‘The producers wanted a zombie horror movie with a couple of cute young female victims,’ Stewart recalled. ‘Thom had a completely different vision. We actually shot some scenes in two versions to satisfy both ideas. Thankfully, Thom’s vision prevailed.’ Joss Whedon has openly credited *Night of the Comet*’s fun tone and strong female leads as an inspiration for him to create *Buffy the Vampire Slayer*.
10. *Day Of The Dead* (1985)
George Romero envisioned the third chapter of his *Dead* series as an epic—he described it as wanting it to be, in his own words, ‘the *Gone With the Wind* of zombie films.’ The producers offered him a $7 million budget, but with the condition that the movie be R-rated so they could recoup their investment. Romero declined, choosing to scale back his original vision rather than watering it down to meet the MPAA’s subjective, inconsistent violence standards. His initial script was an expansive adventure that examined the broader consequences of a zombie apocalypse, but the film that ended up on screen mostly takes place in a bleak Florida military bunker. It’s a dark, relentlessly nihilistic film that received harsh criticism at the time of its release, yet it later developed a loyal following. Romero reportedly considered this his favorite entry in the *Dead* series.
11. *The Return Of The Living Dead* (1985)
Originally conceived in 1972 by *Night of the Living Dead* collaborators John Russo, Russ Steiner, and Rudy Ricci as a direct sequel to Romero’s film, *The Return of the Living Dead* spent over a decade caught up in legal battles. When it finally moved forward, director (and *Alien* screenwriter) Dan O’Bannon completely reworked the script, removing all references to Romero’s classic film, transforming it into an ’80s-infused punk-rock comedy. This version of the film popularized the now-iconic idea that *zombies crave brains* above all else.
12. *Re-Animator* (1985)
Filmmaker Stuart Gordon certainly made the most of his 72 years. He was arrested on obscenity charges for a 1968 stage version of *Peter Pan*, brought David Mamet’s first full-length play to the stage in 1974, and co-created the *Honey, I Shrunk the Kids* franchise for Disney in the late ’80s. However, he’s perhaps most renowned for his wild adaptation of Lovecraft’s work in *Re-Animator*. Gordon originally hoped to turn Lovecraft’s 1922 short story ‘Herbert West: Re-Animator’ into a half-hour TV show, but when he learned there was no market for short horror on television, he shifted gears to make the film. *Re-Animator* also introduced one of the genre’s most beloved *scream queens*: soap opera actress Barbara Crampton made her horror debut in the film and went on to star in numerous genre films over a career that spans more than five decades.
13. *Night Of The Creeps* (1986)
For horror fans of a certain generation, *Night of the Creeps* is likely first remembered by its iconic poster, which decorated video store walls in the ’80s. It depicted a zombified frat guy in a blood-soaked tux with the unforgettable tagline: ‘The good news is your date is here. The bad news is … he’s dead.’ While the poster was memorable, it didn’t fully convey the film’s delightful mix of retro science fiction, gruesome practical effects, and frat-house humor—elements that defined Fred Dekker’s directorial debut. The film flopped at the box office but eventually became a cult classic on home video. If you were fortunate enough to see the movie in theaters, you might’ve left with some cool swag, like the “anti-Creep protection masks” that TriStar Pictures handed out at certain screenings. These masks featured the warning: ‘If you scream … you’re dead.’
14. *Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn* (1987)
When Sam Raimi finished the first cut of *Evil Dead 2*, no one bothered to submit it to the MPAA for a rating. Those who saw it unanimously agreed that, despite the film’s slapstick humor, its over-the-top violence would have easily earned it an X rating. There were two issues with this: not only would exhibitors refuse to screen an X-rated movie, but many newspapers and TV stations wouldn’t accept ads for them, making the film nearly impossible to promote. As Raimi was contractually required to deliver an R-rated movie and his distributor, De Laurentiis Entertainment Group (DEG), was bound by MPAA rules, a workaround was needed. DEG created a shell company called Rosebud Releasing Corp. (a sly nod to *Citizen Kane*’s famous mystery) to release the film discreetly.
15. *Braindead* (1992)
Before Peter Jackson earned an Oscar nomination for *Heavenly Creatures* and became renowned for his epic fantasy trilogies, he crafted a series of wild, hard-R exploitation films in New Zealand. One of these was *Braindead* (released in North America as *Dead Alive*), an outrageously gory and darkly humorous zombie film. The movie features a hero battling an undead baby, mowing down zombies with a lawnmower, and even returning to the womb of his zombified mother. Shot on 16mm film, *Braindead* has built a passionate fanbase, and in 2018, Jackson revealed plans to use the technology from his *They Shall Not Grow Old* documentary to restore his early splatter films, including *Braindead*, in 4K high definition.
16. *Dellamorte Dellamore* (1994)
The 1990s weren’t exactly a golden age for zombie films. According to the now-defunct Zombie Movie Database, only 46 zombie movies were produced during the decade, a sharp decline from the 172 produced in the 2000s. However, a few remarkable films did emerge, and among them was the wonderfully odd Italian film *Dellamorte Dellamore* (released in North America as *Cemetery Man*). Directed by Michele Soavi, a seasoned collaborator with Italian horror legends Lucio Fulci, Joe D’Amato, and Dario Argento, *Dellamorte Dellamore* is a beautifully grotesque and darkly comedic tale about a cemetery watchman (Rupert Everett) who struggles to keep the dead buried. Though its logic may occasionally falter, the film never loses its sense of intrigue and delivers some of the most surreal, hallucinatory images in zombie cinema.
17. *28 Days Later* (2002)
Danny Boyle’s *28 Days Later* is famous for introducing fast-moving zombies, but it also deserves recognition for its inventive approach to capturing an eerily empty London. To achieve this, the crew often had just one or two hours in the early morning to shoot crucial scenes, using as many as eight small digital cameras simultaneously to ensure a quick production while police blocked off traffic. Boyle and cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle even modeled some of their shots after iconic news footage from real-life crises like the Bosnia War, Rwanda, and Northern Ireland, giving the film a visceral realism that set it apart from other zombie movies.
18. *Shaun of the Dead* (2004)
Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg didn’t create the *zomcom* genre with *Shaun of the Dead*, but they brought it into the 21st century, making it accessible to mainstream audiences while still keeping the genre's roots intact. If the many-worlds theory holds true, somewhere in the multiverse, *Shaun of the Dead* stars Helen Mirren. According to Clark Collis’s definitive book *You’ve Got Red on You*, the filmmakers initially approached Mirren for the role of Shaun’s mother, Barbara. As Wright recounts, Mirren declined, saying she would only join the film if she could play Ed. Although things turned out well with Penelope Wilton playing Barbara (the role Wright and Pegg had written for her) and Nick Frost as Ed, it’s fun to imagine Mirren in that unforgettable Ed role.
19. *[REC]* (2007)
Not only is *[REC]* one of the most terrifying zombie films in recent memory, but it also became a cornerstone of the modern *found footage* genre. Writer-directors Paco Plaza and Jaume Balagueró were working for Spanish production company Filmax when they started brainstorming new ideas to shake up horror. Just three months later, they secured funding and began shooting *[REC]*, a real-time, single-camera, one-location movie presented as a live television news report. Though it shares some DNA with *The Blair Witch Project*, *[REC]* is deeply embedded in the gothic Spanish horror movement of the early 2000s. Its take on the zombie outbreak theme also adds a chilling religious angle. Regardless of your faith, the final moments of *[REC]* are pure, heart-stopping terror.
20. *Pontypool* (2008)
Director Bruce McDonald has firmly stated that the antagonists in *Pontypool* are not zombies, but rather *conversationalists*. The virus in the film spreads through a breakdown of language, turning the infected into violent creatures driven by their frustration at their inability to communicate. (The word *typo* is hidden within the title.) Screenwriter Tony Burgess adapted his 1995 novel *Pontypool Changes Everything* into the screenplay, with inspiration reportedly drawn from Orson Welles’s famous 1938 *War of the Worlds* radio broadcast. Set within a radio station as an apocalypse unfolds outside, *Pontypool* presents a thought-provoking, inventive twist on the genre.
21. *Train To Busan* (2016)
*Train to Busan* was a massive success in South Korea, grossing over $80 million during its theatrical run. It marked the first live-action feature directed by Yeon Sang-ho, who had previously gained acclaim for two adult-themed animated films before creating South Korea’s inaugural live-action zombie film. The idea for *Train to Busan* came to Yeon while he was working on an animated feature called *Seoul Station*, a zombie apocalypse story inspired by the plight of homeless individuals living in Seoul’s busiest train station. In an interview with *Korea JoongAng Daily*, Yeon revealed he was more influenced by confined, high-tension thrillers like *United 93* and *Captain Phillips* than by other zombie films.
22. *The Girl With All The Gifts* (2016)
This film features one of the most unique protagonists in zombie cinema. Melanie, portrayed by 13-year-old Sennia Nanua, is not only a child and a person of color, but also a zombie (referred to as a *hungry* in the film). According to *Rue Morgue* magazine’s Monica S. Kuebler, over 1000 young actresses auditioned via video, with about 500 more meeting the filmmakers in person to land the lead role. Nanua, a British actress with no prior feature film experience, was the last to audition. *The Girl With All the Gifts* casts Nanua alongside two powerful female leads: Gemma Arterton as a teacher who forms a bond with the young zombie, and Glenn Close as a scientist who aims to dissect her in hopes of finding a cure for the fungal infection that triggered the outbreak.
23. *One Cut Of The Dead* (2017)
Some purists might argue that this exceptional Japanese film doesn’t belong on a list like this, but revealing why would spoil one of the movie’s best twists. Just know that you might find yourself a bit confused for the first 40 minutes, before writer-director Shin’ichirô Ueda’s clever plan begins to take shape. *One Cut of the Dead*, filmed in just eight days at an abandoned water treatment plant, gained momentum through glowing reviews and word-of-mouth, ultimately becoming a massive success. The production company originally expected to sell 5000 tickets, but a year after its release, it had sold over 2 million.
24. *Anna And The Apocalypse* (2017)
It’s somewhat ironic that the most unapologetically cheerful film on this list has one of the most heartbreaking backstories. *Anna and the Apocalypse* began as a 2011 short film, *Zombie Musical*, written and directed by Scottish filmmaker Ryan McHenry. Over the following years, McHenry and his close-knit team worked to expand the short into a full-length feature that reimagines the zombie apocalypse genre as a Christmas musical. Tragically, McHenry passed away from cancer in 2015 before he could see the movie become a festival hit at events like Fantastic Fest. Director John McPhail was brought in to complete the film, which has since become one of the funniest and most heartwarming zombie movies you’ll ever see.
25. *Blood Quantum* (2019)
In historical terms, *blood quantum* is a contentious method used to determine an individual’s Native American or First Nations ancestry, based on the proportion of their ancestors who could prove tribal affiliation. In the context of this list, it refers to a Canadian zombie film with a unique twist: Members of Canada’s Mi’kmaq tribe are able to successfully defend their reservation from a zombie outbreak due to their genetic immunity to the disease, only to find themselves in a battle against the undead when infected white people seek refuge on their land. In an interview with *The Toronto Star*, Mi’kmaq writer-director Jeff Barnaby explained that he saw the zombie genre as “a tool to contextualize colonialism and the horror of the past so it can be digested for the future.”
