20 recent zombie comedy horror movies that prove the apocalypse can be hilarious
Welcome to Knockout Horror. Today we are checking out 20 recent zombie comedy horror movies that prove the apocalypse can be hilarious.
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20 Hilarious Zombie Comedy Horror Movies
Making a genuinely scary horror film is hard enough. Making a laugh-out-loud comedy is arguably even harder. Trying to merge those two things together, what with all the gore, guts, and gags, is a challenge that has lead plenty of legitimately decent directors to despair. Throw zombies into the mix, too? That’s a recipe for disaster.
Too many scares and the comedy suffers. Too many laughs and it isn’t scary. Not enough zombies? Well, what was the point in the first place? Turning a harrowing apocalypse into something to chuckle about takes some serious skill. With that being said, when a movie gets that balance perfectly right? It can be a thing of beauty. I’ve put together 20 of my absolute favourite zom-coms, from the last 15 years, from all over the globe. Let’s take a look at 20 recent zombie comedy horror movies that prove the apocalypse can be hilarious.
| # | Movie Title | Origin | The Vibe |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | One Cut of the Dead (2017) | Japan | Innovative, subversive masterpiece. |
| 2 | Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead (2014) | Norway | Unhinged, violent slapstick. |
| 3 | I Am a Hero (2015) | Japan | Dark humor with Tokyo-scale gore. |
| 4 | The Odd Family: Zombie on Sale (2019) | South Korea | Quirky, cabbage-eating family fun. |
| 5 | Juan of the Dead (2011) | Cuba | Sharp political and social satire. |
| 6 | Little Monsters (2019) | Australia | Heartfelt kindergarten carnage. |
| 8 | Warm Bodies (2013) | USA | Charming and sensitive “rom-zom-com.” |
20. Detention of the Dead (2012) – The Breakfast Club With Bites
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 4.5/10
- 🎬 Director: Alex Craig Mann
- 🧟 Country: USA
The Star of the Show: The mismatched high-school stereotypes.
The Knockout Verdict: Enjoyable enough for easy laughs.
It’s really trying to channel a mix between The Breakfast Club and zombies. The humour relies on those familiar high-school stereotypes and tropes, forcing the archetypal “goth” or “cheerleader” to deal with the undead while also complaining about their adolescent problems. It’s predictable but still fun.
Why It’s Here: It gets literally no love at all, but it earns a spot for being a predictable, fun mix between The Breakfast Club and a zombie outbreak.
The Synopsis
A group of mismatched high-school students stuck in detention must work together to survive when a zombie outbreak traps them in their school.
19. Zombeavers (2014) – Animatronic Tails and River Cabin Terror
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 4.8/10
- 🎬 Director: Jordan Rubin
- 🧟 Country: USA
The Star of the Show: The flesh-hungry animatronic beavers.
The Knockout Verdict: Pure, unadulterated zany horror cheese.
The humour is entirely obvious here and it comes by way of the movie’s ludicrous premise. It’s a full-blown B-movie parody that knows exactly how stupid it is and doesn’t give a crap. The sight of the low-budget, animatronic beaver puppets chomping on people is pure, unadulterated zany horror cheese.
Why It’s Here: It’s one of those movies where you feel a bit ashamed that you actually enjoyed it. It’s a proper, ridiculous B-movie that is weirdly a lot of fun.
The Synopsis
The plot is as simple and as ridiculous as the title suggests. A group of college kids staying at a riverside cabin are menaced by a horde of undead, flesh-hungry beavers. It’s a proper b-movie but, for some reason, weirdly a lot of fun.
18. Stalled (2013) – Janitorial Carts and Toilet Cubicle Survival
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 5.3/10
- 🎬 Director: Christian James
- 🧟 Country: UK
The Star of the Show: The hapless office janitor.
The Knockout Verdict: Quintessential cringey British humour.
It’s a British “bottle-movie” zombie horror comedy. The humour is situational and very cringey in that quintessentially British way. The entire film is about one man in one small space, trying to survive with only the items in his janitorial cart and his own wits.
Why It’s Here: It’s a “bottle-movie” zombie horror comedy that manages to find fun moments despite its cramped, toilet-stall location.
The Synopsis
A hapless office janitor gets trapped in a women’s toilet cubicle. Only to find himself in a sudden fight for his life after a zombie apocalypse breaks out at the office Christmas party.
17. The Dead Don’t Die (2019) – Bill Murray and Deadpan Policework
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 5.5/10
- 🎬 Director: Jim Jarmusch
- 🧟 Country: USA
The Star of the Show: The bone-dry stone-faced police officers.
The Knockout Verdict: Fourth-wall-breaking satire with a dry edge.
This is a very dry, meta, and rather deadpan film. The comedy comes from the characters’ (especially Bill Murray and Adam Driver) complete lack of surprise at the unfolding apocalypse. It’s less of a “zom-com” and more of a fourth-wall-breaking satire designed to take the viewer along on the ride.
Why It’s Here: The cast is actually insane, featuring a bevy of huge stars, and the bone-dry reactions to the rising dead are uniquely entertaining.
The Synopsis
In the sleepy town of Centerville, the dead inexplicably begin to rise from their graves, much to the confusion of the town’s stone-faced police officers.
16. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (2016) – Austen Metaphors and Martial Arts
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 5.8/10
- 🎬 Director: Burr Steers
- 🧟 Country: USA / UK
The Star of the Show: The Bennet sisters with katanas.
The Knockout Verdict: Jane Austen meets George A. Romero.
The humour is all about the clash of tones. Like the sheer absurdity of hearing prim and proper, period-accurate drama dialogue from Jane Austen (“It is a truth universally acknowledged…”) while the characters are polishing muskets and performing kung-fu decapitations. It’s weirdly enjoyable.
Why It’s Here: The period setting somehow works quite well with the zombie theme, making for some surprising laughs and a unique genre mashup.
The Synopsis
In an alternate 19th-century England, the Bennet sisters are martial arts masters, trained to protect the countryside from a zombie plague. All while navigating the pressures of high society and the never ending pressure to marry. It’s Jane Austen meets George A Romero in an unlikely blending of disparate genres.
15. Yummy (2019) – Cheap Surgery and Body Part Slapstick
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 5.9/10
- 🎬 Director: Lars Damoiseaux
- 🧟 Country: Belgium
The Star of the Show: The over-the-top practical gore effects.
The Knockout Verdict: A proper Belgian gore-fest.
It’s a proper Belgian gore-fest. The humour isn’t remotely subtle; it’s a slapstick cartoon of violence and nudity. The comedy comes from the sheer, over-the-top practical gore effects and the darkly comic situations the characters find themselves in, often involving detached body parts.
Why It’s Here: It brings a relentless European energy to the Zom-Com genre, packed with gags involving detached body parts and botched experiments. Check out our full review of Yummy right here.
The Synopsis
A young couple travels to a shady Eastern European hospital for cheap plastic surgery. Only to find themselves trapped in an outbreak of a zombie virus from a botched “rejuvenation” experiment. The cover of this movie says it all. It’s full of gore, over the top humour, and a lot of boobs.
14. Freaks of Nature (2015) – Vampire Outcasts and Alien Invasions
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 5.9/10
- 🎬 Director: Robbie Pickering
- 🧟 Country: USA
The Star of the Show: The unlikely trio (Human, Vampire, Zombie).
The Knockout Verdict: A chaotic, everything-but-the-kitchen-sink parody.
It’s a classic high-school monster mash. It feels like movies like this don’t really get made much anymore. The comedy comes from taking your typical high school cliques and making them literal monsters. The zombies are the outcasts, the vampires are the cool goths, and the humans are just… well, humans. It’s a chaotic, silly, everything including the kitchen-sink approach to a genre parody.
Why It’s Here: It brings together some of horror’s favourite monsters in one place, creating a classic high-school monster mash.
The Synopsis
In a town where vampires, zombies, and humans peacefully (if awkwardly) co-exist, a sudden alien invasion forces an unlikely trio to form. Consisting of a human, a vampire, and a zombie, the team sets about overcoming their differences and saving the world.
13. Cooties (2014) – Chicken Nuggets and Undead Classrooms
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 5.7/10
- 🎬 Director: Jonathan Milott, Cary Murnion
- 🧟 Country: USA
The Star of the Show: The feral, flesh-eating primary schoolers.
The Knockout Verdict: Atypical antagonists and a stellar cast.
The joke is simple, right? The zombies are just kids, they can’t be that threatening. The humour comes from the teachers (including Elijah Wood and Rainn Wilson, oh, with an appearance by Saw writer Leigh Whannell) struggling with the moral-yet-hilarious dilemma of having to fight, and “kill,” a horde of tiny, obnoxious, undead children.
Why It’s Here: Prepare for zombie kids having their heads bashed in by their own teachers. It features an appearance by Leigh Whannell and never lets up.
The Synopsis
A mysterious virus, spread by a contaminated chicken nugget, turns primary school children into feral monsters, forcing a group of misfit teachers to fight their way out.
12. Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse (2015) – Makeshift Weapons and High School Crushes
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 6.3/10
- 🎬 Director: Christopher Landon
- 🧟 Country: USA
The Star of the Show: The three high-school sophomores.
The Knockout Verdict: Classic, raunchy teen comedy with scouts.
It’s a classic, raunchy teen comedy in the vein of American Pie that just happens to have zombies in it. The humour is goofy, gross-out, and relies on gags like the scouts trying to fight zombies with makeshift weapons from a hardware store.
Why It’s Here: It’s a ton of fun and feels like a spiritual successor to classic adventure comedies focused on groups of friends teaming up against evil.
The Synopsis
Three high-school sophomores on the eve of their last ever scout camp out must use their scouting skills to save their town (and their high school crush) from a zombie outbreak. It feels like there aren’t nearly enough of these adventure comedies focused on a group of friends teaming up to fend off evil.
11. Life After Beth (2014) – Sensitive Zombies and Problematic Exes
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 5.6/10
- 🎬 Director: Jeff Baena
- 🧟 Country: USA
The Star of the Show: Zombie Beth.
The Knockout Verdict: An awkward indie-dramedy found in mundane reality.
It’s an awkward zombie indie-dramedy. The comedy is found in the rather uncomfortable and mundane reality of the situation. It treats the resurrection not as a horror miracle, but as a bit of a problematic relationship issue. Like dealing with an ex who is not just bitter and resentful but also slowly decomposing and has a craving for human flesh.
Why It’s Here: It puts a comical focus on the topic of grief and moving on, similar to Nina Forever and Burying The Ex.
The Synopsis
A young man is devastated when his girlfriend, Beth, dies. He gets a second chance, however, when she mysteriously returns from the dead. He soon learns, however, that “zombie Beth” is a lot more volatile and high-maintenance than he remembers.
10. Go Goa Gone (2013) – Russian Mafiosos and Remote Island Raves
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 6.6/10
- 🎬 Director: Krishna D.K., Raj Nidimoru
- 🧟 Country: India
The Star of the Show: Saif Ali Khan as Boris.
The Knockout Verdict: India’s first mainstream zom-com is a ton of fun.
Go Goa Gone is India’s first mainstream zom-com, and it’s immensely enjoyable. The humour comes from the three slacker protagonists being completely useless in a crisis, and from the enjoyable parody of Bollywood tropes, all while they are being hunted relentlessly.
Why It’s Here: It’s an absolute ton of fun that successfully brings the zombie comedy genre to Bollywood with a colorful, drug-fueled rave rampage.
The Synopsis
Three friends, looking to escape their problems, convince a “Russian” mafioso (played by respected Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan) to take them to an exclusive rave on a remote island. Unfortunately, their fun is quickly cut short when a new party drug turns everyone into zombies.
9. Anna and the Apocalypse (2017) – High School Musicals and Candy Cane Carnage
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 6.0/10
- 🎬 Director: John McPhail
- 🧟 Country: UK
The Star of the Show: The melodic edge of the apocalypse.
The Knockout Verdict: Shaun of the Dead meets High School Musical.
It’s a full-blown zombie-Christmas-high-school-musical. The humour is baked into its premise. Characters will have heartfelt, cheesy musical numbers about their teenage angst, only to be interrupted by a rampaging zombie that they have to beat to death with a giant candy cane. Check out our full review right here.
Why It’s Here: The Christmas setting and melodic chaos make it a great option for unique festive viewing, even if it feels a little confused in parts.
The Synopsis
In the small sleepy town of Little Haven, a high school student and her friends must fight, sing, and dance their way through a zombie apocalypse that just so happens to take place right before Christmas. Look, let’s not beat around the bush, here. It’s Shaun of the Dead meets High School Musical. If you like your Zombie horror with a melodic edge, this is the movie for you.
8. Warm Bodies (2013) – Romeo, Juliet, and Sensitive Flesh-Eaters
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 6.8/10
- 🎬 Director: Jonathan Levine
- 🧟 Country: USA
The Star of the Show: “R,” the sensitive zombie.
The Knockout Verdict: Funny, compelling, and legitimately charming.
This is, to be honest, Romeo & Juliet with zombies. The humour comes from R’s internal monologue, which is basically a classic “why am I like this?” teen narrative, and his awkward attempts to woo the human girl while trying to stop his zombie friends from eating her.
Why It’s Here: It manages a deft balance between charm and comedy, proving that even a zombie can find their humanity again through love.
The Synopsis
The story is told from the perspective of “R,” a sensitive zombie who, after saving a girl from an attack by his fellow marauding zombies, begins following her and slowly starts to experience another transformation. It’s a really sweet movie that would probably make for a perfect date night or valentine’s day option.
7. Zombieland: Double Tap (2019) – Rule-Obsessed Survivors and Road Trip Chaos
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 6.7/10
- 🎬 Director: Ruben Fleischer
- 🧟 Country: USA
The Star of the Show: Zoey Deutch as Madison.
The Knockout Verdict: Witty, sarcastic, more of the same fun.
The comedy is in the characters that comedy horror fans have come to know and love. It’s the same witty, sarcastic, and rule-obsessed characters back together one more time. The introduction of a “dumb blonde” stereotype (played to a tee by Zoey Deutch) who survives by pure luck provides some of the biggest laughs.
Why It’s Here: The original dysfunctional family is back to battle evolved zombies. It’s consistent, high-budget zombie road trip fun.
The Synopsis
I flipped a coin here on this one and the original, you can pretty much take either in this spot. The original dysfunctional “family” of four (Columbus, Tallahassee, Wichita, and Little Rock) return to battle new, evolved forms of zombies while navigating the pains and perils of their own personal relationships. Ruben Fleischer doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel. It’s more of the same zombie apocalypse road trip based fun.
6. Little Monsters (2019) – Ukuleles, Taylor Swift, and Petting Zoo Pandemonium
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 6.3/10
- 🎬 Director: Abe Forsythe
- 🧟 Country: Australia / UK / USA
The Star of the Show: Lupita Nyong’o as Miss Caroline.
The Knockout Verdict: Darkly comedic and surprisingly heartfelt.
The humour is all about contrast. Lupita Nyong’o’s character, Miss Caroline, tries to protect the children’s innocence by convincing them the zombie apocalypse is just a complicated game of “tag.” The comedy is her sweet, ukulele-playing persona juxtaposed with her savage and strangely efficient blood-drenched zombie-killing.
Why It’s Here: Lupita Nyong’o is always fantastic. It takes a little while to get there, but the slapstick horror fun is well worth the wait.
The Synopsis
A washed-up musician and a kind-hearted kindergarten teacher (played by Lupita Nyong’o of Us fame) must team up with a children’s entertainer to protect a class of five-year-old schoolchildren from a sudden zombie outbreak at a petting zoo.
5. Juan of the Dead (2011) – Havana Dissidents and Capitalist Ventures
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 6.4/10
- 🎬 Director: Alejandro Brugués
- 🧟 Country: Cuba / Spain
The Star of the Show: Juan and Lazaro.
The Knockout Verdict: Sharp political and social satire.
It’s a pretty sharp political and social satire. The humour comes from the characters’ laid-back, “make the best of it” attitude. They are so used to their lives being difficult that a zombie apocalypse is just another inconvenience to be navigated and another opportunity to make a little profit in the process.
Why It’s Here: It’s part zom-com and part social commentary. It works incredibly well and is easy to enjoy despite some questionable morals.
The Synopsis
When a zombie apocalypse hits Havana, the Cuban government insists the undead are just “dissidents” paid by the US. Two lazy friends, Juan and Lazaro, decide to start a capitalist venture: a business that kills your infected loved ones… for a fee. The venture doesn’t seem so smart, however, when they find themselves in a fight for their lives.
4. The Odd Family: Zombie on Sale (2019) – Scheming Families and Cabbage-Eating Pets
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 6.6/10
- 🎬 Director: Lee Min-jae
- 🧟 Country: South Korea
The Star of the Show: “Zzong-bi” the pet zombie.
The Knockout Verdict: Quirky, bizarre, and weirdly wholesome.
It’s a quirky, weirdly wholesome, and utterly bizarre family comedy. The zombie (named “Zzong-bi”) is less of a horrifying monster and more of a confused, cabbage-eating pet. The humour comes from this dysfunctional family’s get-rich-quick schemes and their complete failure to understand the actual danger they’re in.
Why It’s Here: It’s a bizarre family comedy that gets overlooked. It turns the terrifying monster trope into a confused, cabbage-eating family asset.
The Synopsis
This is a recent zombie comedy horror that seems to get a bit overlooked. When a pharmaceutical experiment conducted on humans goes wrong, the result is a single, rather placid zombie. A scheming rural family discovers him, and instead of killing him, they try to make a profit off him, thinking his bite has rejuvenating properties.
3. I Am a Hero (2015) – Delusional Manga Assistants and High-Scale Gore
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 6.8/10
- 🎬 Director: Shinsuke Sato
- 🧟 Country: Japan
The Star of the Show: Hideo Suzuki.
The Knockout Verdict: The most underappreciated zom-com ever?
The comedy here is actually quite dark. The humour comes from the main character’s total ineptitude and inability to succeed. He’s a loser who is so wrapped up in his own delusions that he barely recognises what is and isn’t real. The zombies themselves, who repeat their daily routines, add a layer of dark, satirical humour that’s even a little sad in parts. Check out our full review right here.
Why It’s Here: It inspired this list. It’s a great horror in its own right, blending total character ineptitude with massive, apocalyptic zombie horror stakes.
The Synopsis
A paranoid and delusional manga artist assistant, who is a complete failure in life, is forced to become a reluctant here when a zombie outbreak (where the dead retain echoes of their former lives) devastates Tokyo.
2. Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead (2014) – Nazi Nemeses and Zombie Warfare
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 6.8/10
- 🎬 Director: Tommy Wirkola
- 🧟 Country: Norway / Iceland
The Star of the Show: The zombie-killing arm nemesis.
The Knockout Verdict: Gleefully unhinged slapstick chaos.
This film is gleefully unhinged in the best possible way. It ditches the straight horror of the first for full-on, Evil Dead 2-style slapstick, chaos, and gore. The comedy is broad, violent, and absurd, featuring zombie-on-zombie warfare, an arm with a mind of its own, and a total disregard for good taste.
Why It’s Here: A rare sequel that surpasses the original. It’s an awesome movie packed full of that trademark dry Norwegian humour.
The Synopsis
The sole survivor of the first film wakes up in a hospital, only to find the zombie-killing arm of his Nazi-zombie nemesis has been mistakenly attached to his body. He now has super-powers and a strange ability to raise the dead. To defeat them once and for all, he must team up with a group of American zombie loving nerds and a misfit band of undead Russian soldiers.
1. One Cut of the Dead (2017) – Abandoned Facilities and Innovative Layers
- ⭐ IMDb Score: 7.6/10
- 🎬 Director: Shin’ichirô Ueda
- 🧟 Country: Japan
The Star of the Show: The brilliant three-layered structure.
The Knockout Verdict: My favourite zom-com of all time.
This is one of the most brilliant and innovative comedies ever made. To say more is to spoil it, but the humour comes in three layers. The first 30 minutes are clunky and awkwardly funny, you have to stick with them. The real comedy comes after that, when the film opens up and completely undoes your expectations. It’s a masterpiece of comedic structure. Check out our full review right here.
Why It’s Here: It’s one of the most innovative comedies ever made. It’s hilarious, touching, subversive, and transgressive. Truly unique.
The Synopsis
A low budget horror movie crew heads to an abandoned WW2 facility in an attempt to shoot a low-budget zombie movie. Little realising that, as they film, a real zombie apocalypse seems to be breaking out, all while the demanding director insists they keep rolling.
Thanks for Reading
Wow! From the heartfelt genius of One Cut of the Dead to the B-movie charm of Zombeavers, this subgenre is clearly undead and well. It takes a special commitment to bringing joy to tackle the end of the world like this. Support your local, one man show horror website. Thanks for reading. Why not take a look at a few more horror movie lists?
🧟 Quick Picks: The Best Modern Zombie Comedies
The Absolute Masterpiece: One Cut of the Dead (2017)
If you only watch one movie on this list, make it this one. It is the most innovative, subversive, and legitimately brilliant zombie movie in decades. Go in blind, stick through the first 30 minutes, and prepare to have your expectations completely undone.
The Gore-Hound’s Choice: I Am a Hero (2015)
For those who want high-scale Tokyo destruction and top-tier practical effects mixed with dark humor. It is a fantastic adaptation of the manga that manages to be a great horror film while still maintaining a sharp, satirical edge.
The Best Slapstick: Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead (2014)
Lean into the madness with this unhinged Norwegian sequel. It ditches the straight horror of the first film for full-on, violent slapstick. Nazi zombies vs. Russian zombies—it’s exactly as chaotic and fun as it sounds.
The Most Charming: Warm Bodies (2013)
Proof that the apocalypse can be sweet. This “rom-zom-com” is genuinely cute and sensitive, making it a perfect date night option for horror fans who want something a bit more heartfelt between the bites.
The Hidden International Gem: The Odd Family: Zombie on Sale (2019)
A quirky and refreshing take from South Korea. It treats a zombie like a family pet and a get-rich-quick scheme. It’s wholesome, bizarre, and consistently hilarious.
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