10 Best 'I’m Dead And I Know It’ Moments In Monster Movies

4. C.J. - Dawn Of The Dead (2004)

Lizzy Caplan Cloverfield
Universal Studios

Did George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead ever need any sort of remake? Absolutely not. That said, Zack Synder's 2004 Dawn of the Dead is surprisingly good, featuring more intense action and high-stakes terror than Romero's more nuanced, satirical original.

That Snyder take also features a character by the name of C.J. who goes out in a spectacular blaze of glory during the film's final moments.

C.J. is arguably the most interesting character of this loose remake, serving as a mall security guard who goes from a power-mad, self-serving prick to a badass zombie killer for the greater good. Throughout this do-over, C.J. is the one who has the best arc and most character development, with Michael Kelly on phenomenal form in the role.

With the film's finale seeing our remaining survivors desperately trying to get to a yacht and secure their supposed safety, C.J. finds himself stuck in the back of a truck as a horde of the undead pile in on him. Maintaining his cool, C.J. puts down zombie after zombie after zombie, until he realises the odds really are against him here. Knowing his end is near, C.J. lets out a "f**king figures" as he explodes some propane tanks, taking out the zombie horde and buying his newfound friends enough time to make it to the boat.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.