All of Us Are Dead Season 2: Unveiling life beyond high school for survivors and zombies next year

South Korean content has taken the world by storm, beginning with ‘Squid Game’ in 2021, Netflix’s top non-English show. Following this, ‘Physical: 100′ and ‘The Glory’ have smashed viewing records, earning global acclaim. In response, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos announced a $2.5 billion investment in the genre, with 60% of viewers having explored these offerings. This year, a lineup of sequels to these globally beloved hits is set.

High school sophomores in green uniforms face the fierce battle of college entrance exams in South Korea. Premiering on Jan. 28, 2022, the Netflix series ‘All of Us Are Dead’ finds its place within the typical zombie genre, yet it stands out by setting these students as the protagonists, offering a novel perspective that diverges from traditional zombie narratives.

In Korean schools focused on college entrance exams, issues like relentless competition, group ostracism, violence, discrimination, and hatred have become normalized, yet they are often dismissed as trivial. Amid this, the worst infectious disease, a zombie virus, breaks out. In their attempt to control the disaster, schools isolate the students, allowing the infection to grow uncontrollably.

In the drama, survivors who are hiding from their zombified peers and teachers say, “In some countries, they are sadder when adults die than when children die. And in others, they are sadder when children die. What do you think our country is?” Tragically, they already know the answer: “Even if they do come, we won’t be the first to be rescued. We’re not that important. We’re just students. Nothing more.” Thus, the spread of the zombie virus in ‘All of Us Are Dead’ is portrayed as a disaster stemming from the marginalized reality of students.

A scene from the Netflix series ‘All of Us Are Dead’./Netflix

Although a typical zombie drama, ‘All of Us Are Dead,’ with its school setting, reached the top of Netflix’s TV show rankings worldwide just a day after its release. Significantly, it ranked first in as many as 60 countries, including the United States, the originator of the zombie genre, and maintained its ranking for 15 days, second only to ‘Squid Game’ among Korean productions.

‘All of Us Are Dead’ was selected as the theme for Universal Studios Singapore’s Horror Nights in September last year and ran as an event for three months. The setup was designed for participants to survive against a horde of zombies within Hyosan High School, much like the actual series.

The rights to the webtoon on which the series is based were acquired by Park Chul-soo, the production company Film Monster’s CEO in 2015, to adapt it into a film. This was before K-zombie works such as ‘Train to Busan’ (2016) and ‘Kingdom’ (2019) emerged.

Having spent 20 years at a major Korean corporation, including a decade in investment and distribution, Park honed his production skills before founding Film Monster in 2014 with Lee Jae-kyoo, a director renowned for numerous hit K-dramas.

Meeting at the Film Monster office in Bangbae-dong, Seoul, on Apr. 3rd, he shared, “I fell for the zombie genre after watching ‘Warm Bodies’ in 2013, and after reading the ‘All of Us Are Dead’ webtoon, I knew it was the one.” However, the reality was challenging due to concerns about the unfamiliar genre of K-zombie works.

He mentioned, “Everyone told me it couldn’t be done. It wasn’t easy to secure investment, which slowed production, but the success of K-zombie works eventually validated the genre. Crucially, the success of ‘Squid Game’ made Netflix production possible.”

The company is currently at the peak of the pre-production of ‘All of Us Are Dead’ Season 2. Director Lee recently stated in an interview, “The season will feature more powerful and evolved zombies, with the fallen city of Seoul as the main setting.” Season 2 is scheduled to start filming in the second half of 2024, during the third or fourth quarter.

 

When you bought the rights to adapt the ‘All of Us Are Dead’ webtoon in 2015, did you expect it to captivate the world like this?

“When I bought the rights, I heard a lot of concerns from those around me. The genre of K-zombie didn’t exist back then, and Hollywood zombie films were the trend. But it was a genre I liked, and I thought it would definitely catch on in Korea. If it worked in Korea, I thought the novelty of a K-school setting could make it viable internationally as well. I never expected this level of success, though. I think it’s thanks to the rise in K-content status following the success of Squid Game.”

Why did you choose the zombie genre?

“I was completely taken by a piece called ‘Warm Bodies’ in 2013. I liked the existence of so-called good zombies who, even in dire situations, try not to harm people. A zombie falling in love, overcoming barriers through pure love, and becoming humanized through that process – how could I not like that? It’s an SF, dystopian genre, but to me, it was a romance movie. I wanted to create a warm zombie story, and that’s why I chose ‘All of Us Are Dead.’”

It must have been a long journey to produce ‘All of Us Are Dead.’

“Having worked in film for 20 years, I realized that without drive, adaptation is impossible. The first thing I consider when choosing a project is whether it can get selected by investors. A movie depends on securing investments, while a drama depends on being scheduled. But this process can be incredibly challenging. So, the most important thing is my conviction. My tendencies, preferences, and what I like. I need to like it to have conviction, and with that, I can push forward. For me, that was the zombie genre. When I bought the rights, everyone viewed it negatively as an unverified genre. But the funny thing is, once ‘Train to Busan’ and ‘Kingdom’ were validated, they now say ‘All of Us Are Dead’ isn’t original and fresh and lacks competitiveness. Isn’t that just another way of saying not to do it? That’s why conviction is so important.”

 

Why do you think ‘All of Us Are Dead’ was a hit overseas?

“Most zombie films focus on the survival and escape of adults. ‘All of Us Are Dead’ pays attention to marginalized, overlooked teenagers. It focuses on the social dynamics of these kids when disaster strikes their school, how they make decisions, come together or scatter, sacrifice, and betray – aspects adults hadn’t been very interested in until now. I think that’s the most distinct point of this work from other zombie narratives.”

How far along is the production of Season 2?

“We’re in the pre-production stage right now. The casting is complete. I’m looking forward to the ensemble of the original protagonists and the new ones joining. All I can say is that both the kids from Season 1 and the scale have grown. Filming will start in the latter half of this year, in the third or fourth quarter, and it’s scheduled to be released in the second half of next year.”

Do you have other projects besides ‘All of Us Are Dead’?

“Besides zombie works, I wanted to do something in the hero genre. I bought the rights to work and pushed for adaptation but couldn’t secure domestic investment. But recently, I’ve entered co-production with a leading Japanese production company. They’re a well-established, verified producer. We plan to officially announce our co-production of a hero work with this company in May.”

Film Monster is a production company with a 10-year history. What kind of work do you want to create in the future?

“Creating fun content is probably a common desire for all content producers, whether a 2-hour movie or a 10-hour series. Of course, I don’t want to lose the fun element either. But I want to highlight small, meaningful stories with more human and fundamental values rather than communicate some significant keywords. But this is difficult. These small stories are hard to invest in. It’s because of the large gap between my ideals and reality. Bridging this gap will be my role moving forward.”