Club Benefits
Anyone who knows me knows I love a good piece of zombie media. My favorite show of all time is “The Walking Dead,” and ever since I first started watching it, I’ve had a soft spot for the genre. So I like to think I’m pretty well-versed in the world of zombie storytelling. However, there’s one survival horror film I only discovered recently, which is “We Bury the Dead.”
Released globally in early 2026 after a 2025 festival premiere, “We Bury the Dead” is a survival horror-thriller directed by Zak Hilditch. Unlike many action-heavy zombie films, this one leans more toward character-driven drama, with the horror elements used to frame a more personal story centred on trauma and the need for closure, set against a bleak post-disaster world.
It won’t be for everyone, especially those expecting constant action from a zombie film. But as a fan of the genre, I found “We Bury the Dead” to be a real surprise. If you’re looking for something different to stream this weekend on Hulu, here’s why it’s worth adding to your watchlist.
What is ‘We Bury the Dead’ about?
“We Bury the Dead” is set in Tasmania after a catastrophic military experiment goes wrong. When a U.S. weapon detonates off the coast, it wipes out much of the population and leaves many of the dead in a strange state where some begin to reanimate. The story follows Ava Newman (Daisy Ridley), a woman whose husband went missing during the disaster.
Refusing to accept he is gone, she joins a body recovery unit tasked with locating and disposing of corpses across the devastated region. While working in the field, Ava encounters unsettling signs that not all of the dead remain lifeless, and she becomes increasingly determined to travel deeper into dangerous territory in search of her husband. Her journey takes her across isolated stretches of Tasmania as she follows leads that might bring her closer to finding him.
‘We Bury the Dead’ is a different kind of zombie film
Given that the premise of “We Bury the Dead” is centred on a woman determined to find her husband, it makes sense the film opens with a melancholic glimpse of them as a happily married couple, before cutting to the disaster via video recordings. The disaster is caused by an experimental U.S. military weapon that accidentally detonates off the coast of Tasmania. It wipes out around half a million people, with a strange side effect in which some of the dead begin to reanimate and regain movement.
It’s clearly not your typical zombie film where a virus spreads or an infection drives the outbreak. The film never fully explains why it happens, and that ambiguity helps the story thrive by keeping the focus on the characters. Daisy Ridley is the driving force of “We Bury the Dead,” delivering one of her most visceral and grounded performances to date. The story centres on the internal wreckage of its characters, especially Ava, who is forced to confront difficult truths along her journey.
As mentioned, “We Bury the Dead” takes its time to explore its characters, so don’t expect a lot of zombie action. It plays more like a slow-burn survival thriller, with the film prioritizing tension and dread throughout. In fact, much of the “action” comes from the grueling, rhythmic task of searching through debris and bodies, with danger building through the atmosphere and a constant ticking clock. When action does occur, it’s deliberately jarring, especially given that Ava has no combat training whatsoever.
“We Bury the Dead” might not be as chaotic and gnarly as other zombie flicks, but it still holds the same impact. There was even a small plot twist I didn’t see coming near the end, but it was a clever way of making you want to rewatch the film so you notice the details, particularly in Ava’s character arc. Many zombie films focus so heavily on survival and the threat of the undead that they often overlook the fact that these corpses were once people with lives and families. “We Bury the Dead” reverses those tropes, and tells a perfectly human story.
Stream on Hulu now
Follow Tom's Guide on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. Subscribe to Tom's Guide on YouTube and follow Tom's Guide Entertainment on TikTok and Instagram.
More from Tom's Guide
