Why are some immune in ‘All of us are Dead’? Halfbie theory explained

What’s a good zombie thriller without any human evolution developments? Netflix’s teen thriller All of Us are Dead takes a similar route, albeit from a very different start. While in other zombie thrillers people stumble upon the virus through ancient medicines or leaked lab work, the virus in the high-school drama was specifically created by a heartbroken scientist to help his son fight off bullies.

Throughout the 12-episode course, viewers saw countless people transformed into blood-thirsty zombies. But few reigned supreme, particularly the half-zombie half-humans who gained superhuman strength and even immortality. How were they able to keep their human consciousness intact? The answers are in the drama itself.

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What are Halfbies or Hambies? Immune people in ‘All of Us are Dead’ explained

Know how the virus works

The Jonas Virus, as named by its creator Lee Byeong-chan (Kim Byung-chul), is a virus that kills white blood cells and increases testosterone levels in a human body. The virus takes over the body, stopping the heart and filling the mind with uncontrollable rage and fear, making them thirsty for human blood.

In the show, All of Us are Dead, through Lee Byeong-chan’s logbooks on his laptop, we see the developments of the virus. In one of his experiments, he mentions that the virus can “learn the human mind” and adapt to stay alive with the human cells. In such cases, it isn’t able to destroy all the white cells, leading to it fighting for its survival and adapting to human consciousness.

The virus merging (or evolving) with human cells produces a different level of human beings. They are turned into halfbies, who do have zombie blood flowing through their veins but can control the urge. Its pros are superhuman strength, extreme tolerance of pain, and immortality. There is a catch, though. The zombie virus lays dormant until something triggers it.

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Meet the ‘All of Us are Dead’ halfbies

Min Eun-ji (Oh Hye-soo), Gwi-nam (Yoo In-soo), and Choi Nam-ra (Cho Yi-hyun) are a few confirmed characters that seem to hold on to their human instincts even after being bitten. Fueled by their strong desire - Eun-ji’s determination to take revenge, Gwi-nam’s hunger for control, and Nam-ra’s willpower to protect her only friends - the Jonas virus “evolved” them into superhumans.

As seen in Eun-ji, she keeps a check on her thirst but ends up biting the professor (who didn’t take any action when she complained about being excessively bullied) but vomited the next moment. However, after being taken to the refugee area, she bites her cowardly friend and feels normal. When in custody, her zombie side rises to the surface multiple times.

As for Gwi-nam, the guy who just never dies no matter how much he’s thrown off the school building, he is perfectly able to control the urge. His strong mindset had him controlling the virus, not the other way around. He used his strength, sense of smell and sound, and pain tolerance to his advantage every time.

The only different halfbie was Nam-ra. The calm-minded class president was seen struggling to resist the urge to bite her friends. When unbearable, she bit herself. Her protective and strong mindset made her one of the few good halfbies, who wants to help people.

In the last episode of All of Us are Dead, Nam-ra shared with her friends that there are many halfbies out there just like her.

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‘All of Us are Dead’ season 2 to give more insight on halfbies

In a season 2 tease, the All of Us are Dead director shared that there are two types of zombies - immortal and immune. Nam-ra, Gwi-nam, and Eun-ji fit the first mold. Although we did see the charred bodies of people, theories are rife with both Gwi-nam and Cheong-san (Yoon Chan-young) being alive (after all, that’s what ‘immortal’ means.)

All of Us are Dead director Lee Jae-kyu’s tease of people completely immune could be speculated to the one scene where a lab mouse was seen near On-jo’s legs. It was never shown if On-jo was bitten, but there are high chances she was. Even at the start, On-jo was bitten by a zombie, but she remained normal throughout the series.

There has been no word on Netflix renewing All of Us are Dead yet. Considering the curiosity, the news might arrive soon.