| Marvel Zombies | |
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| Genre | |
| Created by | |
| Based on | Marvel Comics |
| Showrunner | Bryan Andrews |
| Teleplay by | Zeb Wells |
| Story by |
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| Directed by | Bryan Andrews |
| Starring |
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| Music by |
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| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 4 |
| Production | |
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| Running time | 31–37 minutes |
| Production company | Marvel Studios Animation |
| Original release | |
| Network | Disney+ |
| Release | September 24, 2025 (2025-09-24) |
| Related | |
Marvel Zombies is an Americanadult animated televisionminiseries created byBryan Andrews andZeb Wells for the streaming serviceDisney+, based on theMarvel Comics seriesof the same name. It is the16th television series in theMarvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) fromMarvel Studios and is produced byMarvel Studios Animation. The series is aspin-off of the animated seriesWhat If...? (2021–2024), set in thealternate timeline introduced in thefirst season episode "What If... Zombies?!" (2021). Continuing from that episode,Marvel Zombies follows a group of survivors as they risk their lives fighting superpowered zombies to save the world. Andrews served asshowrunner and director, with Wells ashead writer.
The series features anensemble cast includingIman Vellani,Dominique Thorne,Hailee Steinfeld,Kerry Condon, Kenna Ramsey,Todd Williams,Kari Wahlgren,Florence Pugh,David Harbour,Simu Liu,Awkwafina,Randall Park,Feodor Chin,Wyatt Russell, Rama Vallury,Elizabeth Olsen,Hudson Thames,Paul Rudd, Greg Furman, Adam Hugill, Daniel Swain,Sheila Atim,Tessa Thompson,F. Murray Abraham, andZenobia Shroff. Marvel Studios was developing several animated series in addition toWhat If...? by June 2021, including a spin-off based on "What If... Zombies?!" which was announced in November. Wells and Andrews were both involved by then. The series features the same animation style asWhat If...?, with Stellar Creative Lab returning from that series to provide the animation. It is Marvel Studios Animation's first series to be ratedTV-MA.
Marvel Zombies was released on Disney+ on September 24, 2025, and consists of four episodes. It is a part ofPhase Six of the MCU. It received mixed reviews from critics.
Marvel Zombies is set in thealternate timeline introduced in theWhat If...? episode "What If... Zombies?!" (2021), where a virus has turned most of the world's population, including theAvengers, into zombies. The series follows a group of survivors as they discover the key to bringing an end to the zombie plague, which leads them to risk their lives traveling across adystopian landscape and fighting superpowered zombies to save the world.[1][2]
Additionally, Isaac Robinson-Smith,Debra Wilson, andAlison Haislip voice the survivors Rick, Denise, and Sandra, respectively. Other actors in minor voice roles includeDave Boat, Terri Douglas,Robin Atkin Downes,Matthew Yang King, Piotr Michael, Andrew Morgado,Ashley Peldon,Michael Ralph,Fred Tatasciore, Mike Vaughn, andMatthew Wood.[14] Characters making non-speaking appearances include survivorsDeath Dealer,[1]Ikaris,[15]T'Challa / Black Panther,[16]Rocket Raccoon,Groot,[17] andBruce Banner / Infinity Hulk,[18] as well as zombiesClint Barton / Hawkeye,Steve Rogers / Captain America,Emil Blonsky / Abomination,Ava Starr / Ghost,Carol Danvers / Captain Marvel,[1]Namor,Hank Pym / Ant-Man,Janet van Dyne / Wasp,Thanos,[19] andHope van Dyne / Wasp.[20] The characterUatu / Watcher also makes a non-speakingcameo appearance.[17]
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Episode 1 | Bryan Andrews | Teleplay by :Zeb Wells Story by : Bryan Andrews and Zeb Wells | September 24, 2025 (2025-09-24) | |
Five years after azombie virus that originated from theQuantum Realm devastates Earth,Kamala Khan,Kate Bishop,Riri Williams, andF.R.I.D.A.Y. survive together inNew York City. They find a shrunken transmitter device inside a zombified Dr.Erik Selvig and travel to aS.H.I.E.L.D. base inOhio to activate it. En route, the group unknowingly enters an ongoing battle betweenIkaris and a zombifiedCarol Danvers. Amidst the chaos, Danvers kills Kate, Riri is bitten by a zombie, and both Riri and F.R.I.D.A.Y. sacrifice themselves to take Kamala away from the battlefield. Kamala is saved byBlade Knight, the current avatar of the Egyptian moon godKhonshu, who takes her to Ohio. Upon arriving at the base, Kamala and Blade encounterMelina Vostokoff,Alexei Shostakov, andYelena Belova, who are guarded by Melina's mind-controlled zombies. The group determines that the transmitter must be used in outer space to broadcast a signal to theNova Corps. The base is attacked by a horde led by a zombifiedOkoye, who serves the Queen of the Dead,Wanda Maximoff. The horde, which includes the zombifiedSteve Rogers,Clint Barton,Ava Starr, andEmil Blonsky, overwhelms the base's defenses. Alexei kills Rogers, Blade kills Ava, and Melina sacrifices herself to allow the others to escape. Blade reveals that he knows of a ship capable of reaching space. | |||||
| 2 | Episode 2 | Bryan Andrews | Teleplay by : Zeb Wells Story by : Bryan Andrews and Zeb Wells | September 24, 2025 (2025-09-24) | |
In a flashback,Xu Shang-Chi, his best friendKaty, FBI officerJimmy Woo, and survivors Rick, Denise, and Sandra are saved from a horde by theTen Rings organization led by Shang-Chi's fatherXu Wenwu. When Shang-Chi is bitten, Wenwu bestows the mysticalten rings to Shang-Chi to contain the infection and sacrifices himself to give time forDeath Dealer to help the group escape. In the present, after fighting offSkrull bandits, Shang-Chi's group arrives atHelmut Zemo's sanctuary, theRaft, along with Kamala's group. Both groups agree to work together and Blade reveals that the spaceship is located inNew Asgard. Along the way, Zemo attempts to sacrifice Kamala's group to the infectedTalokanil for safe passage. Instead, a zombifiedNamor leads his people to attack the Raft while Zemo andJohn Walker attempt to flee in an escape pod. Namor kills Walker, Rick, Denise, and Sandra before Kamala kills him with the group's help. When the Raft begins to sink, Yelena sacrifices herself and stays behind to manually override the pod's launch. The group successfully escapes and travels to New Asgard, while Yelena toasts her fallen allies before the zombies break in and kill her. | |||||
| 3 | Episode 3 | Bryan Andrews | Teleplay by : Zeb Wells Story by : Bryan Andrews and Zeb Wells | September 24, 2025 (2025-09-24) | |
In a flashback,Peter Parker,Scott Lang's head, andT'Challa arrive inWakanda only to see that the country has been conquered by a zombifiedThanos. They fight Thanos alongsideThor,Rocket, andGroot, but Thanos kills Rocket and Groot, gravely injures Thor, and attempts tosnap theInfinity Gauntlet. T'Challa sacrifices himself to push Thanos into Wakanda'svibranium core and destroys theInfinity Stones while Parker and Lang are saved by the remaining sorcerers ofKamar-Taj:Rintrah,Sara, and theLondon Master. In the present, Kamala's group reaches New Asgard, with Khonshu convincingValkyrie to let them inside. TheAsgardians have been feasting on food provided by Wanda herself, who explains that she has regained control and is actually after Kamala's powers to use them to "heal" the world. The food is revealed to be zombie remains that infect the Asgardians and Alexei, who also ate it. The zombies kill Zemo, Death Dealer, and Woo while Thor fights Wanda to buy time for the group to escape in an Asgardian ship into space. Kamala activates the transmitter, but the already-stationed Nova Corps reveals that Earth has been quarantined and orders the group to turn back or be incinerated. | |||||
| 4 | Episode 4 | Bryan Andrews | Teleplay by : Zeb Wells Story by : Bryan Andrews and Zeb Wells | September 24, 2025 (2025-09-24) | |
The Nova Corps shoots down the ship, but the group is rescued by the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj, who reveal thatBruce Banner willingly absorbed the Infinity Stones' energy after their destruction and has transformed into "Infinity Hulk" to prevent it from destroying Earth. Having amassed enough zombies to defeat Hulk, Wanda arrives to take the stones' energy for herself. Hulk fights off the zombies like the normal ones, Zombie Abomination, the giant-sized zombies, and the Asgardian Zombies before the group arrives to defend him, but they are soon overpowered. A zombified Thor arrives and kills Blade, Sara, and the London Master as the overwhelming hordes also kill Shang-Chi, Katy, Valkyrie, Rintrah, Parker, and Lang. Hulk unleashes a powerful blast to kill Thor, but it leaves him vulnerable and allows Wanda to take the stones' energy. Despite her initial refusal, Kamala is persuaded by Wanda to help her remake the world. After a blinding explosion, Kamala wakes up and reunites with Riri and Kate, with everything seeming to have gone back to normal. However, reality flickers, and the real Riri fighting zombies tells Kamala she has hacked the system and that what she is seeing is not real, leaving Kamala shocked. | |||||
By June 2021,Marvel Studios Animation was developing a slate of at least three more series in addition to theirDisney+ seriesWhat If...? (2021–2024).[21][22][23] The next month, the series were said to be in various stages of development and were not expected to debut until at least 2023.[24] AMarvel Zombies animated series was announced during aDisney+ Day event in November 2021,[25] based on theMarvel Comics seriesof the same name.[26]Marvel Studios presidentKevin Feige had previously expressed interest in a live-actionMarvel Zombies adaptation in 2013, but was not able to accurately adapt the storyline to film due to the MCU's target demographic.[27]Bryan Andrews returned as director fromWhat If...? and also served asshowrunner,[26][28] withZeb Wells—a writer for theMarvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) seriesShe-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022) and the filmsThe Marvels (2023) andDeadpool & Wolverine (2024)—set as creator,head writer, and executive producer;[29][25][26][30] he was ultimately credited as co-creator alongside Andrews.[31]
The series returns to the zombie-infestedalternate timeline that was introduced in theWhat If...? episode "What If... Zombies?!" (2021), picking up five years after its ending which saw a zombifiedThanos appear with a nearly completeInfinity Gauntlet.[29][32] Feige and animation headBrad Winderbaum enjoyed that episode so much that they suggested the story be continued,[28] and development began after a positive fan response to the episode.[1] Originally conceived as a film,[29] Andrews calledMarvel Zombies' four episodes a "mini-movie event".[28] The change from a film to a miniseries was made in part because the creatives wanted to includePeter Parker / Spider-Man, as Marvel Studios is only able to use the character in short-form animation whileSony Pictures controls the character's other film and television rights.[33] Marvel Studios' Feige,Louis D'Esposito, Winderbaum, andDana Vasquez-Eberhardt served as executive producers alongside Wells and Andrews, with Danielle Costa andCarrie Wassenaar as producers.[34] During Marvel Studios Animation's panel at the 2022San Diego Comic-Con,Marvel Zombies and the other projects discussed were introduced as being part of the "Marvel Animated Multiverse".[35] Also at the panel,Marvel Zombies was announced to be the studio's first animated series to be ratedTV-MA so it could feature all the "gore and splatter you want from a zombie show".[36][37]
In September 2025, ahead of theseries premiere, Winderbaum said that Marvel Studios had plans for a potential second season, which was dependent on a strong audience response to the first season to get greenlit.[38] He also noted thatMarvel Zombies was "caught in the middle" of the studio's creative overhaul in late 2023 and was not planned to have additional seasons.[39] In mid-October, Winderbaum stated that audiences had "showed up in a major way" for the series when asked about the viewership.[40] Andrews explained that the creatives had planned story elements for additional characters in the world who did not appear in the first season, such asBucky Barnes, which he hoped to feature in a potential second season.[41]
Wells wrote the series' teleplays, based on stories he conceived with Andrews.[34] Winderbaum called the series "pretty intense" and compared the level of violence to theMarvel Zombies comics.[42] Andrews noted that the TV-MA rating meant they "don't have to pull punches. We can be a little bit more hardcore."[28] He said the series has humor mixed in with the action, violence, drama, and emotion,[43] and added, "It's not just a zombie story, it's a sweeping adventure—one with themes of hope and despair, and that's what you want from a rich zombie story."[28] Profanity is used sparingly in moments where it "fit", and the creators "tr[ied] not to be gratuitous about it", with Andrews explaining that the violence and intense character beats were what led to the TV-MA rating.[29]
The series introduces the original character Blade Knight, a combination ofEric Brooks / Blade andMoon Knight. Originally, the creatives planned for the character to simply be a version of Blade asMarvel Zombies was being developed alongside theplannedBlade film by Marvel Studios. However, once the film entered various development delays, theMarvel Zombies team decided to create a new version of the character who was the Fist ofKhonshu, freeing them creatively to not be tied to plans for the film.[44]T'Challa / Black Panther appears in the series following being featured in theWhat If...? episode, but does not speak, given Marvel Studios had decided not to recast the role following actorChadwick Boseman's death in August 2020. Andrews said that had Boseman not died, the series would have made "completely different choices" with the character.Ryan Coogler, who directed the MCU filmsBlack Panther (2018) andBlack Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022), provided "some great ideas" for the character's sequence that were "really additive" after being shown an early animatic of it.[45]
In November 2023,Iman Vellani said she was reprising her MCU role asKamala Khan / Ms. Marvel in the series; she had already completed her voice work by then.[3] In November 2024, several other actors were revealed to be reprising their MCU roles in the series:Awkwafina asKaty Chen,David Harbour asAlexei Shostakov / Red Guardian,Simu Liu asXu Shang-Chi,Elizabeth Olsen asWanda Maximoff / Red Queen / Queen of the Dead,Randall Park asJimmy Woo,Florence Pugh asYelena Belova,Hailee Steinfeld asKate Bishop, andDominique Thorne asRiri Williams / Ironheart.Todd Williams was also announced as part of the cast.[4] Olsen had recorded her lines in 2020 or 2021.[46] In February 2025, Winderbaum saidHudson Thames—who voiced Peter Parker / Spider-Man in "What If... Zombies?!" and went on to voice the character in the Disney+ animated seriesYour Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (2025–present)—would also be reprising his role in the series.[13][47]
In July 2025,Feodor Chin said he would be reprising his role asXu Wenwu from thesecond season ofWhat If...? (2023).[12] The following month,Paul Rudd,Wyatt Russell, andTessa Thompson were revealed to be reprising their respective MCU roles asScott Lang / Ant-Man,John Walker, andValkyrie,[2] while Todd Williams was revealed to be voicing Blade Knight,[7][8] replacingMahershala Ali, who was cast as the character for the MCU films; Ali was unable to reprise his role in the series due to a scheduling issue.[48] In September, several other actors were revealed to be reprising their MCU roles in the series:Kerry Condon asF.R.I.D.A.Y., Adam Hugill asRintrah, Daniel Swain asLondon Master,Sheila Atim asSara,F. Murray Abraham as Khonshu, andZenobia Shroff asMuneeba Khan.[5] The same month, Kenna Ramsey andKari Wahlgren were revealed to be reprising their respective roles asOkoye andMelina Vostokoff from thethird season ofWhat If...? (2024).[6][5] Additionally, actors voicing characters that were portrayed by different actors in previous MCU projects include Rama Vallury asHelmut Zemo and Greg Furman asThor;[5] Vallury previously voiced a different version of Zemo in the Marvel Studios Animation seriesX-Men '97 (2024–present).[49]
The series features the samecel-shaded animation style asWhat If...?, with character likenesses based on the actors from the films.[50][51] For example, Blade Knight retains the likeness of Ali despite being voiced by a different actor in the series.[8] The animation is "2.5D", with 3D models rendered with 2D lighting to appear like flat drawings.[52] Animation was provided by Stellar Creative Lab, one of the studios that worked onWhat If...?.[53] Paul Lasaine served as the production designer, after previously working onWhat If...?.[54] Many of the animation crew who worked on the series appear as background zombies.[32]
Laura Karpman and Nora Kroll-Rosenbaum returned fromWhat If...? as the composers forMarvel Zombies.[55] The soundtrack was released on September 26, 2025.[56]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Honor Me" | 5:13 |
| 2. | "Sorry" | 3:00 |
| 3. | "Zombies" | 1:39 |
| 4. | "Up to You" | 1:50 |
| 5. | "Night Traveler" | 1:49 |
| 6. | "To the Light" | 2:33 |
| 7. | "Nothing Left" | 1:39 |
| 8. | "Ambush" | 2:05 |
| 9. | "Norse Aggression" | 1:37 |
| 10. | "Transmitter" | 1:31 |
| 11. | "Helping Hand" | 1:22 |
| 12. | "Little Bear" | 2:00 |
| 13. | "Road Trip" | 2:54 |
| 14. | "We Survive" | 1:38 |
| 15. | "Almost There" | 1:57 |
| 16. | "Fall Out" | 1:45 |
| 17. | "Leave Them" | 1:36 |
| 18. | "Epic" | 2:27 |
| 19. | "Zombie Food" | 1:29 |
| 20. | "Defend" | 1:47 |
| 21. | "Inside Out" | 1:12 |
| 22. | "Everyone Who Suffered" | 2:14 |
| 23. | "Alone" | 1:31 |
| 24. | "Take the Stage" | 2:22 |
| Total length: | 1:12:00 | |
The series was discussed during Marvel Studios Animation's panel at the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con, when artwork of the characters was revealed.[1] Andrews and Winderbaum promoted the series during Marvel Studios Animation's panel at theD23 convention in August 2024, where footage was shown.[57][50][58] Both Germain Lussier ofGizmodo and Ray Flook ofBleeding Cool compared the footage to theMad Max franchise.[57][50] More footage from the series was included in a video that was released by Disney+ in October, announcing the release schedule for Marvel Television and Marvel Animation projects through the end of 2025.[59] More footage was included in asizzle reel that was shown at Disney'supfront presentation in May 2025.[60]
The official trailer was released on September 2, 2025,[31] featuring the song "From Me to U" byBabymetal andPoppy.[61] According toThe Hollywood Reporter, the trailer was the second-biggest launch for a Marvel Studios Animation series afterX-Men '97 (2024–present), with Blade Knight the most-talked about character onsocial media.[62] Priya Prakash ofIndiatimes highlighted some scenes from the trailer—such as Spider-Man decapitating a horde of zombies with his webs, and Blade Knight slicing a zombieGhost with his sword—and stated that they show "how far Marvel is willing to push the envelope" with the series.[19]
Marvel Zombies was released on Disney+ on September 24, 2025,[29] and consists of four episodes.[63] It was previously scheduled to premiere on October 3.[34] In July 2022, the series had been expected to debut in 2024.[36] In January 2024, Andrews said he was unsure when the series would be released, revealing that the release date had been continually shifting,[64]: 51:00–51:08 and the series was undated at that time.[65] Marvel Studios Animation's panel at D23 in August 2024 covered series, includingMarvel Zombies, that were intended for release over the following 12 to 18 months, though it was specifically stated thatMarvel Zombies would not be released "for a while".[66][67] Its October 2025 release month was announced in October 2024,[59] and was moved up to its September release date in August 2025.[29] Andrews stated thatMarvel Zombies was ready to release by late 2024 aroundHalloween, but another Marvel Studios miniseries,Agatha All Along, was already scheduled for release at that time, soMarvel Zombies was delayed to 2025 to prevent the ratings of both series from negatively impacting each other.[68][69] The series is part ofPhase Six of the MCU.[70]
Streaming analytics firm FlixPatrol, which monitors daily updated VOD charts and streaming ratings across the globe, reported thatMarvel Zombies was the most-streamed series on Disney+ in more than 30 countries following its release, ranking aboveGrey's Anatomy (2005–present),High Potential (2024–present), andAlien: Earth (2025–present).[71] In the United States, the series topped Disney+'s most-watched list during its first three days, becoming one of Marvel Studios Animation's best openings to date.[72] TVision, which tracks viewer attention, program reach, and engagement across more than 1,000CTV apps, announced thatMarvel Zombies was the third-most streamed show in the U.S. between September 22–28.[73] On September 29, the series ranked No. 2 overall on Disney+ in the United States, behindElio (2025).[74] On October 6,Marvel Zombies was the most-streamed series on the platform globally, according to FlixPatrol.[75]
The review aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes reports a 66% approval rating based on 35 reviews.[76]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 66 out of 100 based on 10 critics, indicating "generally favorable".[77]
Alonso heads up Marvel's dedicated "mini-studio," Marvel Studios Animation, which is behind such shows asWhat If ...? [...] and the summer 2022 series of Vin Diesel–voiced original shorts,I Am Groot.
