Best Return of the Living Dead Movies, Ranked
All 5 Return of the Living Dead films with enough votes to rank, ordered by TMDB audience score. The Return of the Living Dead leads at 7.2; the franchise averages 6.1. This is audience opinion, not a critics' list.
- 1
Two employees at a medical supply warehouse accidentally release a toxic gas from a misplaced top-secret U.S. Army shipment, causing the dead to rise from a nearby cemetery with an insatiable hunger for human brains.
7.22,332 votes - 2
Having recently witnessed the horrific results of a top secret project to bring the dead back to life, a distraught teenager performs the operation on his girlfriend after she's killed in a motorcycle accident.
6.6915 votes - 3
A group of kids discover one of the drums containing a rotting corpse and release the 2-4-5 Trioxin gas into the air, causing the dead to once again rise from the grave and seek out brains.
6.4697 votes - 4
In an attempt to rescue their friend from an evil corporation, a group of teenagers end up releasing a horde of bloodthirsty zombies.
5.2261 votes - 5
A student creates and sells a drug called 'Z' which has the unexpected side effect of resurrecting the dead as flesh-eating zombies, who proceed to wreak havoc at a Halloween rave.
5.2227 votes
Frequently asked questions
What is the best Return of the Living Dead film?
The Return of the Living Dead (1985) rates highest at 7.2 out of 10 from 2,332 TMDB votes.
How are these Return of the Living Dead films ranked?
By TMDB audience score — the average rating from every user who has scored the film. Only films with at least 50 votes are included, so a handful of ratings cannot skew the order. This is audience opinion, not a critics' list.
Which Return of the Living Dead film is rated lowest?
Return of the Living Dead: Rave to the Grave (2005) sits last at 5.2. The franchise averages 6.1 across 5 rated films.
The Return of the Living Dead watch order →