Plot
Zed, Addison, Eliza, and Willa have finished their freshman year at Mountain College. Zed and Addison have spent most of the year dedicated to their respective sports, football and cheerleading. Both have been so focused on succeeding that they have spent almost no time with each other or with their other friends. Zed plans on going to a summer football camp to prove he is worthy of “first string” status, while Addison plans on going to a summer cheer camp to make herself competitive for cheer captain.
Zed, Addison, Eliza, and Willa take a road trip to their respective summer destinations when a mysterious energy surge causes Zed’s Z-band to malfunction, running their car off the road. The crash leaves the group lost in an unknown area, and they split up to find help.
Zed encounters a new group of monsters, the Daywalkers, led by Commander Bright. Addison encounters the Vampires, led by the Vampire Eldress. The two groups have a longstanding rivalry from competing over a shared and dwindling food/energy source: Blood Fruit. Nova and Victor, young leaders in training, each face pressure from their elders to do whatever it takes to secure Blood Fruit for their clan, despite experiencing mysterious visions of each other.
The Daywalkers and Vampires arrive to the Blood Fruit orchard at the same time, alongside Eliza and Willa, but the gate to the orchard is locked. While searching for clues on how to unlock the gate, the young groups of Daywalkers, led by Nova, and Vampires, led by Victor, settle into the abandoned Camp Rayburn, a camp where the ancestors of Daywalkers and Vampires used to co-exist. At the camp, Nova and Victor meet and start remembering their visions.
Zed, Addison, Eliza, and Willa find themselves acting as camp counselors between the two opposing groups, hoping to convince them to work together. Nova and Victor bond over their shared visions of each other, believing something supernatural is drawing them together. Meanwhile, the mysterious energy surges continue, threatening harm to zombies and werewolves far beyond the camp.
The Daywalkers and the Vampires slowly begin to work together and are ultimately able to overcome their differences and open the gate to the Blood Fruit orchard. However, when the elders arrive, they are shocked to see the two groups working together and begin to fight, inadvertently burning half the orchard down. The elders declare war on each other, and the two groups separate.
Zed, Eliza, and Willa discover that the dying Blood Fruit roots are what is causing the dangerous energy surges. Nova and Victor believe that uniting their peoples’ moonstones will help heal the roots and stop the energy surges, but they fear doing so would be an impossible task. Addison and a weakened Zed “pass the torch” and encourage them to make the impossible possible.
The Daywalkers and the Vampires work together to rebel against the elders and are able to unite their moonstones, which heals the roots, stopping the energy surges, ending the feud between the two groups, and causing miraculous Blood Fruit growth. The united monsters celebrate the accomplishment.
Zed and Addison reflect on their experience and decide to spend the rest of the summer with loved ones, choosing to value relationships over personal achievement. Nova and Victor promise to remain in touch, but before they go their separate ways, Nova approaches Victor to give him a hug. As they embrace, they witness a supernatural water spout form over the ocean.
Production
On November 22, 2023, Production Weekly revealed that a fourth Zombies film was in-development, with Milo Manheim and Meg Donnelly reprising their roles as Zed and Addison respectively. Paul Hoen would also return to direct the new entry, alongside co-production with Bloor Street Productions following their prior involvement with the previous two installments. Unlike the other films however, Zombies 4 was filmed in Auckland, New Zealand, instead of Toronto, Canada. [9]
The film was officially greenlit on February 10, 2024, with Chandler Kinney and Kylee Russell returning as Willa and Eliza, respectively. Freya Skye joined the cast as Nova and Malachi Barton was cast as Victor. [7] Principal photography began on March 26, 2024 in New Zealand, with Swayam Bhatia, Julian Lerner, Mekonnen Knife, Lisa Chappell, and Jonno Roberts rounding out as Vera, Ray, Vargas, Eldress, and Commander Bright, respectively. [8]
Reception
Viewership
Zombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires garnered 9.3 million views globally within its first ten days on Disney+. [12] [13] [14] Streaming analytics firm FlixPatrol, which monitors daily updated VOD charts and streaming ratings across the globe, reported that the film was the most-streamed title on Disney+ in the U.S. following its release. [15] Zombies 4 also remained the top-ranked title globally on Disney+ for the week ending July 14, with Zombies and Zombies 2 ranked fourth and eighth, respectively. In the U.S., all four films in the franchise occupied the top four positions on the platform, with Zombies 4 ranking No. 1. [16] Nielsen Media Research, which records streaming viewership on some U.S. television screens, calculated that Zombies 4 recorded 274 million minutes of watch time from July 7–13, ranking as the seventh most-streamed film that week. [17] [18] The following week, from July 14–20, the film was streamed for 284 million minutes, maintaining its seventh-place position. [19] [20] TVision, which tracks viewer attention, program reach, and engagement across more than 1,000 CTV apps, announced that Zombies 4 was the fourteenth most-streamed film during the month of July. [21]
Critical response
Natalie Dean of Plugged In stated that Zombies 4 successfully continues the franchise's tradition of fun, musical storytelling while serving as a heartfelt passing of the torch to a new generation of characters. She highlighted how the film follows Zed and Addison after their freshman year of college as they mentor newcomers Nova and Victor, encouraging teamwork and understanding between previously rival monster factions. Dean praised the film's positive messages about friendship, leadership, and embracing differences, noting that the characters' growth and cooperation drive the story. She also emphasized the franchise's signature elements—catchy songs, vibrant choreography, and magical worldbuilding—while noting that the film sets up an exciting new chapter for the series with potential spinoffs. [22] Tessa Smith of Mama's Geeky said that Zombies 4 delivers catchy songs, vibrant choreography, and an engaging story, while also serving as a bittersweet passing of the torch to a new generation. She highlighted the emotional farewell to Zed and Addison, praising Milo Manheim and Meg Donnelly's performances and noting the film's careful focus on familiar characters alongside newcomers Nova and Victor. Smith complimented the chemistry and performances of Freya Skye and Malachi Barton, suggesting they are well-suited to carry the franchise forward. She also noted the soundtrack as among the best in the series, with musical numbers likely to inspire TikTok trends. [23]
Polly Conway of Common Sense Media gave Zombies 4 a grade of three out of five stars, saying that the film delivers a fun, musical story while emphasizing positive messages about acceptance, teamwork, and friendship. She noted that Addison and Zed serve as positive role models, embracing new experiences and helping their new friends without judgment. Conway also highlighted the franchise's commitment to diverse representation, reinforcing the series' themes of inclusion and understanding. [24] Brennan Klein of Screen Rant asserted that Zombies 4 continues the franchise's trademark mix of corny charm, dazzling musical numbers, and vibrant production design. He noted that while the film's attempt to introduce a new generation of characters—Nova and Victor—sometimes reduces the focus on fan favorites Zed and Addison, Manheim and Donnelly deliver their best performances yet, bringing humor and emotional depth to their roles. Klein praised the choreography and inventive musical sequences, highlighting standout numbers like "Kerosene" for its energetic vocal performance and inventive staging. However, he observed that the film plays it safer than previous installments. [25]
Impact
Within ten days of its release, the Zombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires soundtrack accumulated 30 million global audio streams, including 20 million on Spotify, 9 million on Apple Music, and 11 million on Amazon Music, totaling over 15 million hours of music streamed. [26] On YouTube, fans watched more than 900,000 hours of soundtrack-related content. The film also generated significant social media activity, with over 35 million impressions and 4.4 million engagements on official accounts in the month following its release, alongside substantial user-generated content. [27]
