All of Us Are Dead

A sudden, fast-moving infection turns a South Korean high school into a sealed danger zone, where students who were once classmates and friends are trapped together as the outside world collapses. As supplies run low and the rules of normal life vanish, small groups form, alliances shift, and hard choices about survival start to define who they become. The story follows several teenagers as they try to protect one another, find escape routes, and decide how far they’ll go when authority fails and the infected are no longer just a distant threat. Tension stays tight and personal, with the focus on young people learning what leadership, cowardice, and sacrifice look like under pressure.

Released in 2022, the series was created by Chun Sung-il, JQ Lee, and Kim Nam-su. It’s a South Korean television production aimed at international streaming audiences, shot with a kinetic style that keeps the action immediate and the claustrophobia sharp.

The show raised the profile of its young cast and became a talking point during awards season conversation, drawing attention from critics and industry observers in South Korea and beyond. While it didn’t dominate global prize lists, it helped make several performers familiar names to international viewers.

Its schoolbound set pieces and relentless pacing made the show a frequent subject online, with fans sharing scene breakdowns, theories, and tributes. The image of teenagers trapped behind classroom doors, trying to keep civility alive amid horror, stuck with viewers and contributed to broader interest in genre Korean dramas in 2022 and after.

Critics generally responded positively, and audience scores reflect strong approval, with an average of 8.279/10 from 4,214 votes. Reviewers noted the balance of visceral action with moral dilemmas, and the series often centers on themes of responsibility, group dynamics, institutional failure, and how young people process trauma. It’s as much about interpersonal tension as it is about the grotesque threat outside.