- - Daisy Ridley Reveals the Most 'Eerie' Scene in Her New Zombie Movie 'We Bury the Dead' (Exclusive)

Sophie HirshDecember 28, 2025 at 8:00 AM

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When watching a zombie movie, you'd probably expect the scariest part to involve, well, a zombie. But in Daisy Ridley's upcoming zombie thriller We Bury the Dead, the most bone-chilling scene has zero zombies in sight. And not only is the sequence spooky for the viewer, but it even felt "eerie" for Ridley and the other people on set while shooting, according to the actress. We Bury the Dead filmed on location in Tasmania, Australia and the cast also includes Brenton Thwaites and Mark Coles Smith.

In an exclusive interview with Parade, Ridley shares what it was like filming certain scenes and how it's more than just a zombie movie. Plus, find out when it hits theaters.

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What is the 'We Bury the Dead' release date?

We Bury the Dead will hit theaters on Friday, January 2, 2026.

What is 'We Bury the Dead' about?

Written and directedby Zak Hilditch, We Bury the Dead chronicles the aftermath of a military disaster that kills 500,000 people in Tasmania, Australia. Ava (Ridley) travels there to search for her husband, and she soon realizes the dead are actually undead—and violent.

Along the way, Ava meets Riley (Mark Coles Smith), a soldier whose wife was killed in the military disaster. The grief-stricken Riley convinces Ava to dress up as his wife and role-play a slow dance with him.

"That sequence felt properly like the most frightening," Ridley tells Parade exclusively about the dancing scene. "The dance is so uncomfortable, and then becomes so properly terrifying."

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"It was so strange, even the energy in the room," Ridley says. She recalls the film's director of photography saying, "It's so weird because it feels romantic, but it feels eerie."

"Riley thinks that Ava is someone else, and Ava thinks that Riley is someone else," Ridley explains. She describes the scene as a "weird alternate reality when [it seems like] things might be going okay."

But suddenly, the dancing stops and the scene becomes horrifying in a new and shocking way — and this part does involve a zombie. "When they both realize that that spell is broken, that ensuing sequence was properly scary," she says.

Another scene that Ridley found scary when filming was a highly choreographed scene that takes place on a bus, which she also describes as the "most challenging" sequence to shoot.

"Adrenaline can make you do funny things," she says. "The height of the adrenaline was so intense. Because when you're being run out by someone, even though your mind knows it's fake, your mind also starts thinking it's real and it's quite scary."

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Watch the official trailer for 'We Bury the Dead'Daisy Ridley reveals the deeper themes in 'We Bury the Dead'

Overall, Ridley doesn't see We Bury the Dead as just a zombie or horror movie—at its core, the film is "about humanity, [Ava's] journey with grief, her journey with motherhood, what that means to her, what she's saying goodbye to and really how far she'll go to get an answer."

And she hopes that if viewers take away anything from the movie, it's that "everyone's fighting a battle we know nothing about."

We Bury the Dead hits theaters on Jan. 2, 2026.

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This story was originally published by Parade on Dec 28, 2025, where it first appeared in the Movies section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”