Zombies 4: Daybreak of the Vampires is probably the only film launch I used to be most trying ahead to in 2025. I really like the Zombies films, not as a result of they’re masterpieces and even significantly coherent, however as a result of they’re enthusiastically, effervescently corny, with sufficient good, strong craft behind them to offer dazzling musical numbers and vibrant manufacturing design.
The now-sprawling franchise, which kicked off in 2018, has used zombies, werewolves, and aliens as (mildly complicated) metaphors for instructing classes concerning the remedy of minority communities, all generously encrusted in a sugar-sweet coating of Disney Channel bubblegum pop. Vampires appeared like a pure match, so I used to be very able to discover what Zombies 4 needed to provide.
It follows zombie Zed (Faculty Spirits star Milo Manheim) and half-alien Addison (Meg Donnelly) attempting arduous to place their noses to the grindstone over the summer time after their first yr of school, hoping to rise within the ranks of soccer and cheerleading, respectively. Nevertheless, a derailed street journey lands them in the course of a brewing battle between vampires and daywalkers over dwindling meals provides.
Whereas Zed, Addison, and pals Willa (Chandler Kinney) and Eliza (Kylee Russell) turn into de facto camp counselors as they try to assist the 2 factions resolve their variations and comply with the clues to open the mysteriously locked gate of their life-giving orchard, daywalker Nova (Freya Skye) and vampire Victor (Malachi Barton) strive to withstand their blossoming forbidden love.
Zombies 4 Spends Too A lot Time Away From Its Important Characters
Its Franchise Ambitions Get In The Approach Of Its Story
I would like to start out with the ingredient that left the worst style in my mouth. And no, I am not speaking about the baffling lore of the brand new monsters (Vampires sleep at evening and drink blood from fruit? Daywalkers are… peppy? That is their solely factor?). These Disney Channel authentic films have many strengths, however worldbuilding has by no means been one in every of them.
The most important demerit is Zombies 4‘s clear effort to have Zed and Addison move the torch to a brand new era. Whereas Barton and Skye are each succesful performers, Nova and Victor do not have lots of chemistry as a result of the screenplay so transparently desires to power them collectively that it forgets to offer them causes to really like one another.
Neither [Milo Manheim nor Meg Donnelly] have ever been higher of their roles…
Decreasing the 2 characters to cardboard cutouts makes it rather more irritating that they take a major quantity of screentime away from Manheim and Donnelly, neither of whom have ever been higher of their roles. Donnelly throws herself full-force into some surprisingly deep emotional moments, whereas Manheim has honed his “charismatic himbo” shtick right into a exact, lethally hilarious level.
Zombies 4: Daybreak of the Vampires Nonetheless Shines The place It Wants To
The Franchise’s Sound Continues To Evolve
Whereas the film’s clear ambitions to spawn a Zombies 5 that reduces the presence of Zed and Addison much more is likely to be difficult to those that love the unique trilogy, Daybreak of the Vampires by no means forgets the core tenet of the franchise, which is to wholeheartedly embrace the pleasures inherent to authentic film musicals.
So far as the choreography goes, the dancing is clear, thrilling, and well-filmed. That mentioned, a lot of the musical numbers cannot fairly match the franchise’s highs, conceptually talking (the trampoline flooring ingredient of “BAMM” within the authentic and the Looney Tunes “Ain’t No Doubt About It” quantity in Zombies 3 come to thoughts).
“Ain’t No Doubt About It” is among the two iconic Zombies songs to be reprised in Zombies 4, with the opposite being the recurring duet “Sometime.”
Nevertheless, a high-flying love ballad and a sequence with curved sticks which can be used to type hoops do stay as much as the franchise’s requirements of exuberant creativity. Moreover, the film briefly busts out an beautiful faucet dance quantity that may simply be the loveliest (and most “traditional musical”) sequence of your entire collection.
Moreover, the music itself is one of the best the franchise has ever had. The Zombies soundtracks have always been evolving, with the rap-infused bubblegum of the unique film including R&B flavors within the sequel and EDM influences in Zombies 3. Right here, the soundtrack reaches a crescendo, pulling in parts from an exhilaratingly large number of musical genres.
Do not misunderstand me, the bubblegum remains to be there in full power. As an illustration, Nova will get a solo quantity that may make Excessive Faculty Musical‘s Gabriella Montez proud.
Nevertheless, different numbers incorporate parts together with the thrilling harmonics of twenty first Century Breakdown-era Inexperienced Day (within the group quantity “Potential,” which sounds so stunning it overcomes having the weakest lyrics of the bunch) and the propulsive rap-rock emotionality of Tinie Tempah’s “Written within the Stars” (in “Kerosene,” which is the film’s standout quantity and Manheim’s best-ever vocal efficiency as Zed).
Zombies 4: Daybreak of the Vampires’ Largest Energy Is Additionally Its Largest Weak spot
The Sequel Performs It Safer Than The Authentic Trilogy
The opposite large flaw of Zombies 4 is not even actually a flaw in any respect. It is the truth that the film is usually a strong, competent made-for-TV film. It is much less eager to take dangers with its visuals and storytelling. This leads to it making only a few missteps, avoiding among the calamitous lows of earlier installments, but it surely equally lacks their dizzying highs.
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I acknowledge that saying “Zombies 4: Daybreak of the Vampires is nice at what it is doing” hardly counts as a grievance. I’d simply personally desire boldly uneven to generically good any day. Finally, this method is one thing that makes me nervous about the place the franchise is likely to be headed quite than being an precise in-the-moment drawback whereas watching the brand new installment.
Zombies 4: Daybreak of the Vampires premieres on Disney Channel on July 10 at 7:00 p.m. ET/PT and begins streaming on Disney+ on July 11.
Zombies 4: Daybreak of the Vampires
6/10
- Launch Date
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July 10, 2025
- Director
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Paul Hoen
- Writers
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Josh A. Cagan, Joseph Raso
- Stars Milo Manheim and Meg Donnelly give their finest performances but.
- The soundtrack is essentially the most textured and thrilling of the franchise.
- The 2 new leads characters do not fairly click on.
- Some parts of the film lean on being generically good quite than thrilling.