10 Fictional Characters Who’d Survive Zombie Apocalypse

The threat of a zombie invasion has been a popular theme to entertain (and terrify) the masses since 1932’s White Zombie came out, shocking audiences. In recent years, the idea of humanity’s downfall at the hands of reanimated corpses has taken hold of entertainment media as more than just a seasonal horror flick for people who love being scared to sleep at night; from The Walking Dead to the cutesy Plants vs. Zombies franchise, the peculiar possibilities of what one would actually do if one was trapped in a zombie apocalypse both fascinates and disturbs. Since the entire scenario is based on fiction, here’s a list of 10 fictional characters who stand a fighting chance of surviving the reign of the undead. Check out the 10 fictional characters who’d survive zombie apocalypse:

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10. Katniss Everdeen (The Hunger Games)

Suzanne Collins’s girl on fire is no stranger to the game of survival (remember when she dug through a baker’s garbage to scrounge for food? And when she illegally traded some of her meats at The Hob? And also when she was bold enough to sell strawberries to the mayor of District 12, even though that was illegal too?) After making it through two televised fights to the death and assassinating a district president all before she hit the legal drinking age, Katniss would probably be desensitized to the blood and gore that comes with the territory of a zombie apocalypse. Therefore she’s obviously one of the fictional characters who’d survive zombie apocalypse. While she was unwittingly turned into a symbol of hope and the face of a cross-district revolution, Katniss is happier in solitude, where she can hunt for food with her bow-and-arrow, sleep in a tree, steal a quick bath in a stream and enjoy her own personal model of streamlined survival success. Her one weakness would be coming across parent-less children (and Peeta, who’s basically in the same boat, with how naive he can be), but she’d take them under her wing, form a ragtag little family of outcasts, and kick undead kiester to protect them.

Though she’d probably be elated to avoid other human beings all together, Peeta would most likely convince her to use her superb archery skills to fight through the zombie hoards and save people who can’t save themselves. We imagine she would enjoy letting an arrow fly through a zombie’s eye or hacking one into bits with a knife. Don’t mess with this mama bear’s cubs (biological or otherwise) or she’ll kill you.

9. Sam and Dean Winchester (Supernatural)

The Winchester brothers can’t catch a break! Their childhood was a string of one occult monster hunt after another in the search for the demon that killed their mom, which meant a lot of cheap motels and self-parenting. Sam, though he tried to get away from the hunting life and become a lawyer, found himself dragged back in at his brother’s behest, and they’ve been lighting up our TV screens with the continuous tragedy of their lives for a decade. These guys are pros at battling the supernatural, swindling gullible people into believing they’re real government agents sent to do important government things, and exorcisms. Not to mention that they took on Satan and won. They are definitely among the fictional characters who’d survive zombie apocalypse. They’re armed to the teeth with weapons, and they both have anti-possession tattoos to keep them safe. Decapitating people who are already dead to lessen the infestation would be a piece of cake. Even if Dean was caught and turned into a walking meat-suit or became possessed by a demon (again), Sam would find a way to save him and vice versa. Rinse, then repeat.

Of course they’d have their vices (like women, cheeseburgers, and pie), but it seems like these two are destined to fight the supernatural for the rest of their (likely prolonged by some sort of heavenly being) natural lives. Having an angel on your side certainly can’t hurt, either.

8. Louise Belcher (Bob’s Burgers)

We know, Tina is the Belcher with the weird zombie obsession— but she would be blinded by necrotic butt cheeks and eaten alive before sundown on the first day. Louise, on the other hand, has no time to be spellbound by the derrières of the dead and that easily makes her one of the fictional characters who’d survive zombie apocalypse. Don’t let those adorable bunny ears fool you though, she’ll punch you in the throat, steal your provisions, and disappear into the woods, leaving you to fend for yourself. Some of her (many) notable accomplishments include: harassing a teenager who stole her omnipresent bunny ears; extorting hard-earned money from Linda in exchange for mother-daughter bonding time; surviving a night in the wild using a combination of her rawest instincts and survivalist propaganda; and even (accidentally, sort of) almost electrocuting her own sister for science. She’s a master manipulator with a knack for quick-but-effective improvise. Louise wouldn’t hesitate to get in a zombie’s face, and if she gets bitten, she’ll bite right back.

7. Danny Fenton (Danny Phantom)

Yo, Danny Fenton he was just 14 when his parents built a very strange machine…(okay, okay, that’s enough). Seriously, though. Danny Fenton— better known as Amity Park’s resident Half a (half-human, half-ghost), Danny Phantom— was a below-average 14-year-old until his DNA got scrambled by an accidental traipse through his parents’ (presumed defunct) ghost portal. With the ability to turn himself into a living ghost— the telltale battle-cry of “Going ghost!” is probably expunged in the case of a zombie apocalypse, wherein silence and stealth is necessitated— Danny has a distinct advantage over everyone who can’t switch between living and dead. Not only that, but his alter-ego comes with fun powers including invisibility, intangibility (we imagine that disappearing and then passing through stuff is too confusing for gangrened zombies to comprehend), shooting plasma rays from his hands, etc. Danny, without doubt is one of the fictional characters who’d survive zombie apocalypse.

In the event of a zombie apocalypse, we have no doubt that Danny would adjust to the learning curve fast enough to save his own skin (and the lives of those he cares about, particularly his family, Tucker, and Sam). He would also find himself drawn into the role of tireless hero, possessing random people on the street to help them out of harm’s way, sizzling undead flesh with his plasma powers, and when all else fails, using the Fenton Anti-Creep Stick to beat back the hordes.

We feel like Danny would even team up with arch-nemesis, Vlad Masters— AKA Vlad Plasmius, the first Halfa. He also happens to have a completely inappropriate obsession with Danny’s mother— to clean up the outbreak. Danny would most likely spend his (little) down-time in the Ghost Zone, making out with Sam, and putting the kibosh on any and all of Vlad’s attempts to woo his mom.

6. Matt Murdock/DareDevil (DareDevil)

The Man Without Fear has faced the Kingpin, a literal grave-robber, the insertion of tiny robots into his brain, his best friend having cancer, and even the revocation of his rights to practice law in Hell’s Kitchen. He’s not afraid of anything, and refuses to let his blindness dictate the course of his life. Plus, it’s hard to be scared of zombies when you’ve already been operated on by a team of literal monsters. That only makes Dare Devil among the fictional characters who’d survive zombie apocalypse.

DareDevil was practically made to star in and ultimately triumph over a zombie apocalypse; his super-senses, fast reflexes and his unwavering belief in justice make him a formidable enemy against mortal flesh, never mind those who have recovered from rigor mortis. DareDevil in a zombie apocalypse wouldn’t be that much different from DareDevil not in one— he’s still going to be a hero; nothing will change that. Unless of course he gets bitten and isn’t somehow then inoculated by The Avengers, or something— then nobody’s going to be safe from being Matt Murdock’s dinner.

5. Archie Andrews (Afterlife with Archie)

Not only has the Archie Horror imprint revitalized Archie Comics and given the characters a mature new feel, it’s put the citizens of Riverdale in absolutely horrifying situations (the blatant incest scenario between the Blossom twins being a tame revelation). You might not think so, but everyone’s favorite redheaded protagonist is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to the undead.

Archie has already proven he’s more than capable of surviving a direct zombie invasion and lands straight among the fictional characters who’d survive zombie apocalypse. (spoiler alert: he kills his zombiefied dad accidentally-on-purpose while trying to save his mom, and the psychological damage hasn’t utterly destroyed him yet. Riverdale’s Golden Boy is made of tougher stuff than we thought).

As it turns out, when zombies enter the equation, the long-standing love triangle between Archie, Betty and Veronica turns into picking one over the other and proposing marriage, so hey, at least the world falling to pieces is good for that. Of course, it’s still early days, and with the continuous delays regarding the book’s release, who knows if our hero, his chosen lady love, or their band of mobile meat-suits will make it out on the other side of the apocalypse.

4. Sherlock & Watson (Victorian Undead)

Sherlock Holmes and his faithful compatriot, Dr. John Watson, are loved the world over for solving complex mysteries and is easily one of the top fictional characters who’d survive zombie apocalypse. The analytical pair aren’t exactly Reader’s Choice to struggle through a zombie-infested world— or at least, they wouldn’t have been, if not for the fact that they’ve already been there, done that.

Writer Ian Edgington and artist Davide Fabri had the guts to wonder how Sherlock Holmes would confront, and ultimately save the world from, a zombie apocalypse. Knowing Holmes and the way his astute steel-trap of a mind is constantly whirring, merely surviving by shooting the zombies and bouncing from safe-house to safe-house wouldn’t be enough; he would ultimately be the one to crack the confounding case: where did the zombies come from? Who started this whole thing? How do we stop it? Not only will he have the answers, he’ll equate them with child’s play, which, yes, would make everyone else feel infantile, but at least we’d do it while also being zombie-free.

3. Star Butterfly (Star Vs. The Forces Of Evil)

Let’s be real: Star Butterfly, the teenaged princess of Mewni, is probably the root of all zombie-related evil. Of course, she won’t have meant to unleash the undead; it’s probably the result of her horribly butchering a spell or not paying enough attention to what her magic actually does. On the surface, she’s the least likely culprit: bubbly, overenthusiastic, ready to make herself comfortable in your life by giving you a puppy that shoots lasers out of its eyes.

If we had to guess, we’d say that Star accidentally transformed humanity’s worst nightmare into a reality by trying to get rid of her demonic ex-boyfriend, Tom (even though he’s got the voice of an angel, AKA Rider Strong, he has some intense anger issues). She likely summoned the zombies thinking they would scare Tom away, only to realize half a millisecond too late that this was an incredibly bad idea.

Not to worry! Star’s not only a princess, she has a magic wand with all sorts of warm-and-fuzzy (yet surprisingly damaging) attacks at her disposal. When all is said and done, Star would be more than happy to spend hours defeating zombies with hard-hitting rainbow punches or turning her wand into something deadly, like a tricked-out machete. She is one of the top fictional characters who’d survive zombie apocalypse.

2. Claire Bennet (Heroes)

Completely ignoring the Heroes Reborn mini-series, Claire Bennet is (almost) the poster child for immortality. As has been established, Claire has the handy-dandy power of spontaneous regeneration— she can fall from a building, break her neck, or casually cut off her own toe; it doesn’t matter, she’ll heal! No wonder she’s made into our list of fictional characters who’d survive zombie apocalypse. We assume this kick-butt power also means that any parts of her mangled by some dead person’s teeth would generate exactly the way they’re supposed to— healthy and 100% human. This makes her an ideal choice to loot stores (she can survive getting crushed underfoot mobs of other panicked humans), distract the zombies while her allies move camp, or even act as the test subject for potential cures to the zombie’s turning bite.

There’s only one weak spot Claire has to be wary of— and as long as she keeps the base of her skull safe from casualty, she’ll outlast every single body walking the planet, and definitely live to see the day when the world is no longer in the throes of a living nightmare.

1. The Minions (Despicable Me)

Yes, yes, it’s the year where everyone hates Minions; these little yellow lackeys have over-saturated every social media platform known to humankind, and, frustratingly for their opposers, they’re the most likely to solve the reanimated corpse issue. Not because they’re brainy enough to challenge Sherlock Holmes, or brave enough to become vigilantes— but because, as the Minions movie has shown us, they are pre-programmed to seek out and serve the most despicable boss around. The Minions are easily one of the fictional characters who’d survive zombie apocalypse.

We’re pretty sure if it was a toss-up between working for a plain old evil genius and working for a hoard of zombies who can turn the aforementioned evil genius into a chew toy, the minions would go for that. Luckily for everyone who doesn’t want to resign themselves to an apocalyptic world with no hope, the minions also have a way of completely and totally eradicating their bosses from the face of the Earth, effectively destroying their own hopes and dreams.

Even the most minion-resistant apocalypse survivor might find themselves liking the color yellow a little more after these guys accidentally burn/drown/electrocute every single zombie away; and if there’s no immediately evil master in the vicinity, at least you can be assured that the Minions will leave you be, as they hit each other aggressively and search for a new raison d’être.