Bill Murray’s Divisive Zombie Movie That Rivaled His Own 15-Year-Old Horror Franchise Sequel Is Now Trending On Netflix

The 2019 zombie movie, The Dead Don’t Die, starring Bill Murray, is now trending on Netflix. The Dead Don’t Die’s star-studded cast, includes Adam Driver, Tilda Swinton, Chloë Sevigny, Selena Gomez, and more, who appear alongside Murray in the horror comedy. The film primarily focuses on a small town that begins to experience unusual deaths and eventually realizes that zombies have invaded their town, forcing them to fight for their lives and leading to The Dead Don’t Die‘s unexpected ending.

Director Jim Jarmusch’s zombie movie works so well largely because of its dry humor and its actors’ abilities to pull that style off. Unsurprisingly, Bill Murray is great in The Dead Don’t Die, and his deadpan reactions contrast perfectly with the absurd events that unfold onscreen. Surprisingly, The Dead Don’t Die was not Bill Murray’s only zombie movie released in 2019, as he also made a cameo appearance in the equally humorous Zombieland: Double Tap that same year.

Bill Murray’s The Dead Don’t Die Released The Same Year As Zombieland 2

Murray Briefly Reprized His Zombieland Role In The 2019 Sequel

Bill Murray’s appearance in Zombieland: Double Tap was only a cameo since his character dies in the 2009 Zombieland movie, but his end credits scenes were still a fun way to bring back the character. As in the original, Murray plays himself, and the scenes present events that occurred at the very beginning of the zombie outbreak. Though he is not the primary focus of the movie, it is funny that Murray would have appeared in two very similar zombie comedy movies in the same year.

Bill Murray’s 2019 appearances in both The Dead Don’t Die and Zombieland: Double Tap are a fun addition to his career, since, other than Ghostbusters and the first Zombieland, Murray has not been in many similar horror-comedies. Because of their similar themes and Murray’s performances, the movies pair well together. Additionally, The Dead Don’t Die includes a subtle reference to Bill Murray’s character in Zombieland, making the connection all the more funny.

How The Dead Don’t Die’s Zombie Movie Rules Compare To Zombieland

Both Movies Clearly State Their Rules

Both The Dead Don’t Die and the Zombieland movies state explicitly how to kill zombies and survive in a zombie apocalypse. Additionally, both use equally funny and meta methods of explaining zombies and how to kill them. In particular, several of the characters in The Dead Don’t Die seem to know how to kill zombies before any of the characters actually ever see the zombies. Along with references to other films of the genre, particularly the zombie movies directed by George Romero, the primary rule that the characters in The Dead Don’t Die cite is to “kill the head,” otherwise the zombies will continue coming back.

The characters of Zombieland have even more methods to survive their zombie outbreak, and they are explicitly stated in the form of numbered rules given by Jesse Eisenberg’s character, Columbus. While the rules cover a variety of topics related to survival in a post-zombie world, the most important rule for killing zombies is hinted at in the title itself. Rule number two is the “double tap,” which means that you always have to shoot a zombie twice to ensure it is really dead. In both movies, it becomes important for the characters to stick to their rules in order to survive.

How The Dead Don’t Die & Zombieland: Double Tap’s Reviews & Box Office Compare

Zombieland: Double Tap Far Outpaced The Dead Don’t Die

The Dead Don’t Die is a very funny movie and has a great cast, but it was no match for Zombieland: Double Tap with critics and at the box office. The Dead Don’t Die received mixed reviews and made $15.3 million at the box office (via Box Office Mojo). Despite its well-known stars and director, the indie movie was shown in far fewer theaters than its zombie competitor. Additionally, some critics felt that The Dead Don’t Die‘s deadpan humor did not always land, but now that’s streaming on Netlfix, perhaps the movie can be appreciated by new fans.

Zombieland: Double Tap also had the advantage of being a sequel to a well-liked movie from a decade earlier. Following the financial and critical success of 2009’s Zombieland, it makes sense that audiences would be excited to see the second one. Upon its theatrical release, Zombieland: Double Tap earned $125.2 million on a budget of approximately $45 million (via The Numbers). Furthermore, the sequel received positive reviews citing its humor and performances, making Zombieland: Double Tap notch above The Dead Don’t Die in Bill Murray’s 2019 zombie movie performances.

Sources: Box Office Mojo & The Numbers