Zombie movies have always been a staple in the horror and adventure genre, from the recently released campy Lisa Frankenstein to the thrilling blockbuster World War Z. Around the world, zombie films have proven to be a hit, as seen in the Korean cinema industry, which is experiencing a zombie resurgence. Zombies have been a rising cinematic inspiration of the 21st century in Korea, with globally renowned works like Train to Busan. The prevalence and heat of these infectious diseases do not appear to be diminishing.
For fans of both South Korean and mainstream cinema, zombie films have always been a particularly popular and sought-after genre. As a result, the nation has been constantly producing zombie films and television shows to satisfy the desires of its viewers. These Korean zombie series and movies, ranging from Netflix's All of Us Are Dead to The Wailing, include psychological thrillers, class allegories, and even historical drama. All of them were brought together by a common theme: the undead, which will satisfy your need for a zombie apocalypse.
20 'Dark Hole' (2021–Present)
Image via OCN and tvNAfter a mysterious sinkhole spews out a strange black smoke and people start inhaling it, they turn into zombified mutants who are bent on chasing down and killing anyone in their path. It's a strange apocalyptic adventure following a detective and a construction worker as they navigate this new world.
While described as mutants and not zombies, these monsters are completely dead to the world. It's a fun apocalyptic adventure. It only has one season, but it tells an interesting story. It is an interesting concept for fans interested in apocalyptic horror stories.
19 'Sweet Home' (2020-2024)
Image via NetflixWhile not directly stated as zombies, Sweet Home is about apocalyptic monsters that start ravaging a city. After Cha Hyun-su's entire family is killed in a horrific accident, he must navigate this strange apocalypse with his newfound friends and survivors.
The show was popular enough to warrant three seasons. It had highly positive reviews and was set to have a fourth season, but was unfortunately canceled earlier this year. It was criticized for not having much of a gripping story but praised for its intense action and suspenseful scenes.
18 'A Monstrous Corpse' (1981)
Image via Hanrim FilmsThe South Korean zombie movie that is the inspiration for all Korean zombie movies, A Monstrous Corpse, or Grotesque Corpse, is about a man who arrives in town for an environmental conference. He runs into an old friend who says he's working on an experimental radio signal that can manipulate the dead. When he triggers the device, corpses from the local cemetery rise up and begin attacking the town.
While not the most complex plot, this '80s movie you probably haven't seen is highly important among Korean zombie movies. The movie is a loose remake of the 1974 movie called Let Lie a Sleeping Corpse, which has a similar plot. It has all the frightening gore of any zombie film, with just a bit more exposition and mystery.
17 'Zombie School' (2014)
Image via Peter Pan PicturesSet in a school for dysfunctional teens, after discovering pigs that were buried under the school, they start biting the faculty, who begin to turn into zombies. The students must put aside their differences and work together to take out the teachers and survive this horrible school.
The movie has been praised for its simplistic storyline and character study of these troubled students. They're being controlled and reprimanded by the teachers, but as we get to know them, we learn that they have trauma beyond the help of the school and deserve better than to be treated horribly by these awful adults. We end up rooting for the kids in their struggle to survive.
16 'I Am a Hero' (2015)
Image via FunimationA 35-year-old manga artist is sick of his low-paying job. He begins having strange hallucinations. His world is shattered as people begin to turn into zombies. He escapes, running through his town, trying his best to help people around him until they can get to Mt. Fuji to be rescued.
I Am a Hero is based on a popular manga of the same name. The manga had multiple spin-offs of different characters from different cities all over Korea. The movie was released in 2015 to positive reviews.
15 'Peninsula' (2020)
Image via Next Entertainment World Peninsula is a stand-alone continuation of the critically acclaimed 2016 zombie film Train to Busan. The story follows former soldier Jung-seok (Kang Dong-won) and his assigned crew on a mission to recover a truck full of cash four years after the zombie virus has infected all of Korea. They must traverse the peninsula on which zombies are currently living.
Peninsula expands the Train to Busan universe by featuring a desolate wasteland where humanity is desperately clinging to survival in settlements. While earning conflicting reviews regarding whether it is a worthy successor to the 2016 picture, Peninsula is still a fun and enjoyable action zombie movie. It is also a celebration of all that is admirable about people and the value of their lives.
14 'The Neighbor Zombie' (2009)
Image via TvN The Neighbor Zombie begins when the hard but tranquil lives of the Seoul residents are disrupted by a virus that has the ability to infect the entire world. They then need to fight back and find other ways to survive if they want to restore everything to normal.
The Neighbor Zombie debuted in South Korea in 2009, the same year that the US released Zombieland starring Emma Stone and Jesse Eisenberg. As a result, it has quite a similar American approach. The Korean counterpart, on the other hand, is considerably grimmer and more sincere, with plenty of scenes that show the compassion and humanity among the survivors. The Neighbor Zombie has a considerable appreciation for the painful and utterly humiliating experience of seeing the collapse of society.
13 'Horror Stories' (2012)
Image via Lotte EntertainmentHorror Stories is a must-see horror anthology film that consists of four separate segments, each with its own unique story and style, all tied together by an overarching narrative. The final installment, titled “Ambulance on the Death Zone,” follows a young girl who dies from an unidentified ailment and turns into a mouth-foaming zombie.
The anthology format of the program and how each piece approaches the topic matter make the movie easier to digest and appreciate by viewers. Each of the segments has a different director, with each one adding their signature flair while still making the film as a whole feel cohesive. Additionally, the last segment captures all the beauty of the typical Korean zombie genre while maintaining just the right amount of horror and gore, making it a valuable addition to the genre.
12 'The Cursed: Dead Man's Prey' (2021)
Image via CJ Entertainment The Cursed: Dead Man's Prey is an extended version of the horror K-drama The Cursed that opens with a shocking murder. It tells the tale of a journalist who investigates an occurrence in which the perpetrator of an odd serial murder case turns out to be a revived corpse. With the help of a girl with psychic abilities, the two join together to unveil the truth behind the chilling case, uncovering horrifying details in the process.
The film's captivating visuals and heart-pounding scenes of zombie attackers' pursuit channel South Korean cinema's unmistakable trademark. Additionally, despite not having the typical zombie plot, The Cursed: Dead Man's Prey is still highly intriguing and will undoubtedly give viewers nightmares after they finish watching.
11 'Rampant' (2018)
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Image via Next World EntertainmentRampant follows Lee Chung (Hun Bin), the Prince of Joseon, who the powerful Qing family kidnaps to appoint him as the next Crown Prince. An invasion of horrific nocturnal zombies threatens to devastate the entire region as Lee Chung spars with Joseon Minister of War, Kim Ja-Joon (Jang Dong-gun).
Rampant is another idea that aims to breathe new life into a popular genre but has fallen into obscurity. Apart from its thrilling and exciting zombie storyline and scenes, Rampant also has plenty of political intrigue to keep the viewers interested in its story. Blending these creatures with the Asian epic action movie style and altering a few rules results in a film packed with adrenaline, stunning visuals, and stock characters in a fascinating plot.
Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Survival Quiz Which Sci-Fi World Would You Survive? The Matrix · Mad Max · Blade Runner · Dune · Star Wars
Five universes. Five completely different ways the future went wrong — or sideways, or up in flames. Only one of them is the world your instincts were built for. Eight questions will figure out which dystopia, galaxy, or desert wasteland you'd actually make it out of alive.
💊The Matrix
🔥Mad Max
🌧️Blade Runner
🏜️Dune
🚀Star Wars
TEST YOUR SURVIVAL →
01
You sense something is deeply wrong with the world around you. What do you do? The first instinct is often the truest one.
APull on every thread until I understand the system — then figure out how to break it. BStop asking questions and start stockpiling — food, fuel, weapons. Questions don't keep you alive. CKeep my head down, observe carefully, and trust no one until I know who's pulling the strings. DStudy the patterns. Every system has a rhythm — learn it, and you learn how to survive it. EFind the people fighting back and join them. You can't fix a broken galaxy alone.
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02
In a world of scarcity, what resource do you guard most fiercely? What we protect reveals what we believe survival actually requires.
AKnowledge. If you understand the system, you don't need resources — you can generate them. BFuel. Everything else — movement, power, escape — runs on it. CTrust. In a world of fakes and informants, a truly reliable ally is rarer than any commodity. DWater. And after water, information — the two things empires are truly built on. EShips and credits. The galaxy is big — you survive it by being able to move through it freely.
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03
What kind of threat keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you're honest about what you're actually afraid of.
AThat reality itself is a lie — that everything I experience has been constructed to keep me compliant. BA raid. No warning, no mercy — just the roar of engines and then nothing left. CBeing identified. Once someone with power decides you're a problem, you're already out of time. DBeing outmanoeuvred — losing a political game I didn't even know I was playing. EThe Empire tightening its grip until there's nowhere left to run.
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04
How do you deal with authority you don't trust? Every dystopia has a power structure. Your approach to it determines everything.
ASubvert it from the inside — learn its rules well enough to weaponise them against it. BIgnore it and stay out of its reach. The further from any power structure, the better. CAppear to comply while doing exactly what I need to do. Visibility is the enemy. DManoeuvre within it carefully. You can't beat a system you refuse to understand. EResist openly when I have to. Some things are worth the risk of being seen.
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05
Which environment could you actually endure long-term? Survival isn't just tactical — it's physical, psychological, and very much about where you are.
AUnderground bunkers and server rooms — cramped, artificial, but with access to everything that matters. BOpen wasteland — brutal sun, no shelter, constant movement. At least the threat is honest. CA dense, rain-soaked city where you can disappear into the crowd and nobody asks questions. DMerciless desert — extreme heat, no water, and something enormous living beneath the sand. EThe fringe — backwater planets and busy spaceports where the Empire's attention rarely reaches.
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06
Who do you want in your corner when things fall apart? The company you keep is the clearest signal of who you actually are.
AA tight crew of believers who've seen behind the curtain and have nothing left to lose. BOne or two people I'd trust with my life. Any more than that and someone talks. CNobody, ideally. Alliances are liabilities. I work alone unless I have no choice. DA community bound by shared hardship and mutual survival — people who need each other to last. EA ragtag team with wildly different skills and total commitment when it counts.
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07
Where do you draw the line — if you draw one at all? Every survivor eventually faces a moment that tests what they're actually made of.
AI won't harm the innocent — even the ones who'd report me without hesitation. BI do what I have to to protect the people I've chosen. Everything else is negotiable. CThe line shifts depending on who's asking and what's at stake. DI draw a long-term line — nothing that compromises my people's future, even if it'd help now. ESome lines, once crossed, can't be uncrossed. I know which ones they are.
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08
What would actually make survival worth it? Staying alive is one thing. Having a reason to is another.
AWaking others up — dismantling the illusion so no one else has to live inside it. BFinding somewhere — or someone — worth protecting. A reason to keep moving. CAnswers. Understanding what I am, what any of this means, before time runs out. DLegacy — shaping the future in a way that outlasts me by generations. EFreedom — for myself, for others, for every world still living under someone else's boot.
REVEAL MY WORLD →
Your Fate Has Been Calculated You'd Survive In…
Your answers point to the world your instincts were built for. This is the universe your temperament, your survival instincts, and your particular brand of stubbornness were made for.
The Matrix
You took the red pill a long time ago — probably before anyone offered it to you. You're a systems thinker who can't help but notice the seams in things.
- You're drawn to understanding how the system works before figuring out how to break it.
- You'd find the Resistance, or it would find you — your instinct for spotting constructed realities is the machines' worst nightmare.
- You function best when you have access to information and the freedom to act on it.
- The Matrix built an airtight prison. You'd be the one probing the walls for the door.
Mad Max
The wasteland doesn't reward the clever or the well-connected — it rewards those who are hard to kill and harder to break. That's you.
- You don't need comfort, community, or a cause larger than the next horizon.
- You need a vehicle, a clear threat, and enough fuel to outrun it — and you're good at all three.
- You are unsentimental enough to survive that world, and decent enough — just barely — to be something more than another raider.
- In the wasteland, that distinction is everything.
Blade Runner
You'd survive here because you know how to exist in moral grey areas without losing yourself completely.
- You read people accurately, keep your circle small, and ask the questions others prefer not to answer.
- In a city where humanity is a legal designation rather than a feeling, you hold onto something that keeps you functional.
- You're not a hero. But you're not lost, either.
- In Blade Runner's world, that distinction is everything.
Dune
Arrakis is the most hostile environment in the known universe — and you are precisely the kind of person it rewards.
- Patience, discipline, and political awareness are your core strengths — and on Arrakis, they're survival tools.
- You understand that the long game matters more than any single victory.
- Others come to Dune and are consumed by it. You'd learn its logic and earn its respect.
- In time, you wouldn't just survive Arrakis — you'd begin to reshape it.
Star Wars
The galaxy far, far away is vast, loud, and in a constant state of violent political upheaval — and you wouldn't have it any other way.
- You find meaning in being part of something larger than yourself — a cause, a crew, a rebellion.
- You'd gravitate toward the Rebellion, or the fringes, or whatever pocket of the galaxy still believes the Empire's grip can be broken.
- You fight — not because you have to, but because standing aside isn't something you're capable of.
- In Star Wars, that willingness is what makes all the difference.
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