About 28 Days Later
Directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland, 28 Days Later stars Megan Burns, Cillian Murphy, Naomi Harris, and Brendan Gleeson. It was released in the year 2003.
28 Days Later depicts a deadly virus spreading through the world, turning its victims into mindless violent zombie-like creatures. This is what the world looks like twenty-eight days after the outbreak (in England).
Movies like 28 Days Later tend to always follow the same formula of survival horror as the protagonists try to stay one step ahead of a horde of zombies. After a recent re-watch I started to think of all the movies like 28 Days Later and to see if they’re all that different from each other.
Turns out they’re not. Not really. Here’s my movie recommendations for rabid fans of 28 Days Later. I hope you enjoy the guts out of them!
25. Return of the Living Dead: Rave to the Grave (2005)
Return of the Living Dead: Rave to the Grave buries the franchise’s punk roots under a mountain of neon and bad techno, swapping satire for straight-up schlock. When a group of college students find more Trioxin and turn it into a party drug called “Z,” their campus rave quickly devolves into a glowstick-lit massacre as the drug transforms users into brain-hungry corpses. Bland hero Julian returns to stumble through the chaos while undead ravers tear through the crowd in a blur of cheap gore and worse dialogue.
24. Cockneys vs Zombies (2012)
Cockneys vs Zombies is a riotous blend of East End grit, heist hijinks, and splatter-happy undead mayhem. When brothers Terry and Andy’s botched bank robbery collides with a zombie outbreak unleashed from ancient catacombs, their rescue mission for their granddad’s retirement home turns into a shotgun-blazing fight for survival. While the young crooks fend off the hordes, granddad Ray and his fellow pensioners prove they’re tougher than they look, battling the undead with wheelchairs, rifles, and pure Cockney attitude.
23. Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis (2005)
Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis marks the franchise’s nosedive from punk-horror rebellion into generic sci-fi sludge. Swapping grit for lab coats, it follows teen protagonist Julian and his forgettable friends as they infiltrate Hybra Tech – a soulless corporation stockpiling Trioxin and cranking out zombie bioweapons. When their rescue mission goes predictably sideways, they unleash a wave of undead chaos amid cheap CGI and hollow action sequences. Stripped of the original’s anarchic humor and subversive edge, Necropolis feels more like a low-budget Resident Evil clone than a Return of the Living Dead sequel, proving that the real death here isn’t from Trioxin – it’s from selling out.
22. Juan of the Dead (2010)
Juan of the Dead is a razor-sharp Cuban horror-comedy that blends zombie mayhem with biting political satire. When the undead overrun Havana and the government dismisses them as “dissidents,” middle-aged slacker Juan seizes the chaos as a business opportunity, offering to kill people’s zombified loved ones – for a price. Joined by his eccentric crew and estranged daughter, he hacks and hustles his way through the apocalypse, evolving from lazy conman to reluctant hero. In the end, as others flee, Juan stays behind to reclaim his homeland from the dead.
21. Aquarium of the Dead (2021)
Aquarium of the Dead is a gloriously trashy horror-comedy that turns a marine park into a blood-soaked fishbowl of chaos. When an experimental drug from a corrupt pharmaceutical company reanimates the aquarium’s animals, everything from sharks to starfish starts tearing through staff and tourists alike. Marine biologist Miranda leads a mismatched crew of survivors through the carnage, uncovering the corporate cover-up behind the undead outbreak as zombie sea lions, octopuses, and even a walrus wreak havoc.
20. Office Uprising (2018)
Office Uprising is a darkly comic horror-action film that follows Desmond, a lazy employee at a weapons manufacturer whose workday spirals into chaos when coworkers drink a new energy drink called “Zolt” – a formula that turns them into violent, bloodthirsty maniacs. Trapped inside the building with his friends Mourad and Samantha, Desmond must battle through floors of deranged office workers in a survival-of-the-fittest corporate nightmare. Blending satire with gore, the film skewers office culture as the trio fights their way to freedom, culminating in a showdown with their deranged boss – proving that in this workplace, staying alive is the only promotion worth fighting for.
19. Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse (2015)
Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse is a gory, foul-mouthed horror-comedy that follows three high school Scouts – Ben, Carter, and Augie – whose night of teenage mischief turns into a blood-soaked battle for survival after a government-caused zombie outbreak hits their town. Teaming up with tough waitress Denise, they fight through zombie strippers, killer animals, and chaotic gore using nothing but their Scout skills and sheer determination. Amidst the carnage, the boys learn hard lessons about friendship, loyalty, and growing up.
18. The Dead Don’t Die (2019)
The Dead Don’t Die is a deadpan zombie comedy set in the small town of Centerville, where strange cosmic shifts caused by polar fracking unleash the undead. Cops Cliff (Bill Murray) and Ronnie (Adam Driver) lead a cast of eccentric townsfolk – including Tilda Swinton’s sword-wielding undertaker and Selena Gomez’s doomed hipster – as zombies rise, craving the consumer goods they loved in life. With its dry humor, meta dialogue, and bleak tone, the film skewers modern apathy and consumerism, turning the apocalypse into a slow, sardonic joke where everyone’s already half-dead inside.
17. Anna and the Apocalypse (2017)
Anna and the Apocalypse is set in a small Scottish town where high schooler Anna dreams of escaping her mundane life – until a zombie outbreak hits just before Christmas. Singing and slashing her way through the chaos with her friends John, Steph, and Chris, Anna fights toward the school where her father and other survivors are trapped. The group faces both the undead and their deranged headmaster, losing loved ones along the way in a mix of heartbreak, holiday cheer, and dark humour.
16. World War Z (2013)
World War Z is a high-velocity plunge into global apocalypse, trading creeping dread for chaos in motion. When a mysterious infection turns people into sprinting, swarming monsters within seconds, ex-UN investigator Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt) is thrust back into action, racing across collapsing nations in search of a cure. From the streets of Philadelphia to a doomed Israeli safe zone to a zombie-infested WHO facility in Wales, every glimpse of order crumbles under the relentless tide of the undead. In a final gamble, Gerry discovers the infected ignore the terminally ill, injecting himself with a pathogen to prove it – and giving humanity a slim, bloody chance to fight back.
15. Shaun of the Dead (2004)
Shaun of the Dead follows Shaun, a directionless Londoner who finally finds purpose when a zombie apocalypse forces him to grow up. After his girlfriend dumps him, Shaun and his slacker best friend Ed stumble through the outbreak, trying to rescue loved ones and ride it out at their favorite pub, The Winchester. Between gory chaos, heartbreak, and pitch-perfect British humour, Shaun evolves from man-child to reluctant hero – losing friends and family but gaining maturity.
14. The Incredible Melting Man (1977)
The Incredible Melting Man is a gloriously grotesque 1970s sci-fi horror film about astronaut Steve West, who returns from a mission near Saturn only to find his body melting from strange cosmic radiation. As his flesh liquefies, he descends into madness, devouring humans in a futile attempt to slow his decay while leaving a trail of viscera in his wake. Pursued by scientists and government agents, Steve’s body and sanity disintegrate completely, ending in a pitiful puddle of goo shoveled away without notice. Celebrated more for Rick Baker’s oozing special effects than its plot, the film stands as a cult classic in the “so bad it’s brilliant” hall of fame.
13. Warm Bodies (2013)
Warm Bodies follows R – a dead man with a dry sense of humor and a flicker of memory – who starts regaining his humanity after falling for a living girl named Julie. Their unlikely romance sparks a transformation among the undead, offering hope that love might literally cure the apocalypse. As R defies Julie’s militant father and helps humans battle the feral “Bonies,” his journey from corpse to man becomes a symbol of rebirth in a decaying world.
12. Life After Beth (2014)
Life After Beth is a darkly funny twist on grief and romance, turning the zombie apocalypse into the world’s most toxic breakup. When Zach’s late girlfriend Beth mysteriously returns from the dead, he clings to the illusion of a second chance – until her mood swings, decay, and flesh cravings make denial impossible. What begins as a bittersweet reunion spirals into a grotesque farce as the whole town starts resurrecting, forcing Zach to face the truth that love can’t survive death’s rot.
11. Return of the Living Dead Part 3 (1993)
Return of the Living Dead Part 3 ditches the slapstick for sorrow, mutating the series into a tragic love story wrapped in barbed wire and body horror. When rebellious teen Curt resurrects his dead girlfriend Julie with Trioxin, their reunion quickly curdles into a grotesque nightmare as Julie’s hunger for flesh drives her to self-mutilation, turning her body into a brutal work of art. As love rots into obsession and bloodlust, Curt’s devotion leads him down the same doomed path, ending in a fiery embrace inside a military containment chamber. Equal parts romance and ruin, Part 3 is a twisted gothic fable where love doesn’t save the damned – it becomes the infection.
10. Fido (2006)
Fido is a darkly comedic twist on zombie lore, blending 1950s suburban nostalgia with biting social satire. Set in an alternate timeline where a corporation called ZomCon has domesticated zombies using control collars, the film follows the Robinson family and their zombie servant, Fido, played with tragic charm by Billy Connolly. When young Timmy befriends Fido, the unlikely bond exposes the rot beneath suburbia’s perfect façade – especially after Fido’s collar malfunctions and chaos ensues.
9. Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Dawn of the Dead, George A. Romero’s seminal sequel to Night of the Living Dead, transforms the zombie apocalypse into a savage reflection of consumerism. As society collapses, four survivors – Fran, Stephen, Peter, and Roger – take refuge in a sprawling shopping mall, a gleaming symbol of everything humanity once worshipped. At first, it’s a haven of excess, but comfort curdles into captivity as death closes in from both outside and within. Betrayed by greed, a biker gang, and their own complacency, the survivors watch their sanctuary drown in blood and decay. Fran and Peter’s uncertain escape underscores Romero’s haunting thesis: even in death, we keep shopping.
8. Zombieland (2009)
Zombieland is a gory, fast-talking road trip through the apocalypse, where survival comes with a side of sarcasm and snack food. After a mad cow disease mutation wipes out most of humanity, neurotic rule-follower Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) teams up with Twinkie-obsessed gunslinger Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) and con-artist sisters Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin). What begins as a tense standoff turns into a dysfunctional found family as they navigate zombie-infested America.
7. The Return of the Living Dead (1985)
The Return of the Living Dead takes Romero’s zombie formula, spikes it with punk rock chaos, and gleefully watches the world burn. When two bumbling warehouse workers accidentally unleash Trioxin gas, it resurrects every corpse in sight – including the ones already dissected – and unleashes hell on a nearby cemetery full of partying punks. What follows is an unrelenting blend of gore, dark comedy, and anarchy as the undead sprint, scream, and demand “More brains!” while every human attempt at containment only makes things worse. Capped off with a nuclear strike that guarantees the infection’s spread, the film ends on a middle finger to humanity itself – a loud, nihilistic anthem to the idea that in this world, death really is just the beginning.
6. Day of the Dead (1985)
Day of the Dead is George A. Romero’s bleakest descent into the zombie apocalypse – a grim, claustrophobic nightmare set in an underground bunker where humanity’s rot runs deeper than the undead outside. With society collapsed and zombies swarming the world, scientist Sarah tries to hold together a crumbling outpost of paranoid soldiers and deranged researchers. As Captain Rhodes rules by rage and Dr. “Frankenstein” Logan experiments on the undead, their fragile truce implodes, unleashing chaos both human and horrific. When the dead finally break through, vengeance, madness, and blood follow, leaving only a few battered survivors and one strangely noble zombie – Bub – to shuffle off into the ruins.
5. Planet Terror (2007)
Planet Terror is Robert Rodriguez’s gloriously unhinged love letter to grindhouse cinema – an explosive, blood-splattered fever dream where everything oozes, explodes, or mutates. When a toxic bioweapon called DC2 unleashes a plague of grotesque, pus-dripping mutants on a small Texas town, go-go dancer-turned-gun-legged badass Cherry Darling (Rose McGowan) and her ex, El Wray, lead a ragtag crew of survivors through a relentless storm of gore and chaos. Between rogue soldiers, sleazy scientists, and gallons of fake blood, the film turns excess into art, ending with humanity clinging to life in a radioactive wasteland.
4. Zombieland: Double Tap (2019)
Zombieland: Double Tap revs up the chaos without changing gears, delivering another round of blood-soaked banter and dysfunctional family fun. A decade after their first romp, Columbus, Tallahassee, Wichita, and Little Rock are holed up in the White House, but relationship drama sends them spiraling back into the wasteland. Between Little Rock’s hippie detour, Madison’s hilariously oblivious survival, and new super-zombies called T-800s, the crew stumbles through a road trip littered with carnage and sarcasm. Joined by Elvis-loving Nevada and doppelgänger disaster duo Albuquerque and Flagstaff, they face off against an undead horde at a peace-loving commune, proving once again that family – even a bullet-riddled, wisecracking one – is the only thing worth surviving for.
3. Night of the Living Dead (1968)
Night of the Living Dead, George A. Romero’s 1968 masterpiece, redefined horror by dragging zombies into the modern age and turning them into a mirror for societal collapse. When a group of strangers barricades themselves inside a farmhouse to survive a sudden undead uprising, tensions within prove deadlier than the monsters outside. As paranoia, mistrust, and violence consume the group, every desperate decision leads to ruin – culminating in Ben, the lone survivor, being gunned down by armed locals who mistake him for a ghoul.
2. Return of the Living Dead Part II (1988)
Return of the Living Dead Part II trades the punk nihilism of the original for gleeful absurdity, turning the zombie apocalypse into a gory Saturday morning cartoon. When kids accidentally crack open another Trioxin barrel in small-town suburbia, toxic gas reanimates the local cemetery, unleashing a horde of wisecracking, brain-hungry corpses. Caught in the chaos are plucky siblings Jesse and Lucy, her boyfriend Tom, and a pair of bumbling grave robbers – plus returning actors James Karen and Thom Mathews, once again hilariously doomed. With its mix of slapstick horror, self-aware humor, and an electrifying finale that literally fries the undead, Part II ditches despair for campy chaos – and somehow, it works.
1. 28 Weeks Later (2002)
28 Weeks Later is a brutal follow-up to 28 Days Later that explores the catastrophic aftermath of recovery. Set half a year after the initial Rage Virus outbreak, the film follows two siblings who unknowingly break quarantine in a newly established safe zone, reigniting the infection and plunging Britain – and soon, the rest of Europe – back into chaos.
What did you think of these movies?
Have you seen any of these zombie horror movies before? Sound out in the comments.
