Zombies (2018)
12-month trend
12-month trend
Monthly article views
2025-09 to 2026-08
A human cheerleader and a zombie football player must navigate their forbidden romance while trying to bring their two communities together.
The story
In the conformist community of Seabrook, an explosion fifty years ago turned half the population into zombies, who were quarantined in Zombietown. Today, zombie students transfer to Seabrook High, where they are patrolled by the Zombie Patrol. Addison Wells, a cheerleader, begins a secret relationship with Zed Necrodopolis, a zombie football player whose Z-Band has been hacked. As they navigate their romance, they face opposition from Bucky, the self-centered leader of the cheerleading team, who seeks to keep the two groups apart and maintain the status quo of the town.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Fifty years ago, an explosion in Seabrook turned half the population into zombies, leading to the creation of Zombietown and Z-Bands to control their hunger. In the present, zombie students attend Seabrook High. Addison Wells, a cheerleader hiding her naturally white hair under a blonde wig, falls in love with Zed Necrodopolis, a zombie football player. Their relationship is kept secret from the public. However, Bucky, the jealous leader of the cheerleaders, discovers the truth. During the homecoming game, Bucky's followers hack the zombies' Z-Bands, causing Zed and others to turn into 'full zombies.' Addison publicly defends the zombies, revealing her true hair color. Following the incident, Bucky kicks out the zombie-supporting cheerleaders. As the cheer competition approaches, Addison and Zed help the zombies and cheerleaders unite to perform a joint routine. The film concludes with a block party in Zombietown where the two groups reunite.
- First release year
- 2018
- Runtime (minutes)
- 94
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Paul Hoen
- Writers
- David Light · writer; Joseph Raso · writer
- Cast and characters
- Milo Manheim · Zed Necrodopolis; Meg Donnelly · Addison Wells; Trevor Tordjman · Bucky Buchanan; Kylee Russell · Eliza Zambi; Carla Jeffery · Bree Prattle; Kingston Foster · Zoey Necrodopolis; James Godfrey · Bonzo; Naomi Snieckus · Ms. Lee
- Genres
- Musical; Zombie
- Themes
- Coexistence; Acceptance; Identity
- Tone and mood
- Musical; Energetic; Sweet
- Setting
- The conformist community of Seabrook and Zombietown in the present day.
- Premise and plot tags
- Human-Zombie Romance; High School Musical; Teen Drama
- Source material / true-story basis
- An unaired 2011 Disney Channel pilot titled Zombies & Cheerleaders by David Light and Joseph Raso.
- Franchise connections
- Zombies
- Content notes
- Stereotyping
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews, with praise for its positive messages and songs, but criticism for its predictable plot. It was a success upon its premiere, garnering over two and a half million views.
- Reported review scores
- Common Sense Media · score: 3 · scale: 5; Rotoscopers.com · score: 4 · scale: 5; Laughing Place · score: 3.5 · scale: 5
- Production trivia
- The film was shot in Toronto over 10 weeks.; The production design features a color palette of mostly pinks and greens.; The soundtrack placed No. 4 on Billboard's list of top-selling children's music titles.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
Your lists
Loading your lists…