8 Smartest Decisions In Zombie Movie History

5. Counting To 12 - World War Z

Shaun of the Dead
Paramount Pictures

With an estimated box office of $190 million, World War Z is easily the most expensive zombie movie ever put together. Despite its massive budget, the film was ultimately somewhat of a disappointment in regards to critical and fan reception, and its $540 million box office haul was way less than Paramount was hoping for.

Initially pegged to be the start of a trilogy, the lukewarm response to World War Z means that we're now eight years removed from the 2013 film and still have to see a follow-up picture.

Still, amongst the so-so film, there are moments that genuinely impress - and one such moment is when Brad Pitt's Gerry makes a super-smart decision that so many other characters in similar films would never dream of doing.

As Gerry and his family make a dramatic run to rooftop safety, they have to navigate a stairwell brimming with infected, bloodthirsty sorts. Upon making it to the roof, Gerry immediately runs to the edge of the building as he counts to 12.

Why 12? That's because it takes 12 seconds for somebody to become infected, and Gerry somehow got zombie blood in his mouth. His logic here, is that if he does show signs of infection, he can throw himself off the rooftop in order to keep his family safe during their helicopter rescue.

Fortunately for Gerry, the 12 seconds go by without any signs of infection rearing their head.

Considering so many zombie movies and TV shows regularly have people doing their utmost to hide signs of infection, it was a refreshing change to see a character being entirely transparent with his nearest and dearest.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

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.