# Zombies In China
Zombies In China is a 2022 hoax that convinced parts of TikTok a zombie outbreak was underway in China and being hidden by the government. The panic drew from a July 2021 opinion piece arguing a zombie apocalypse would likely start there, blended with a Russian comedy clip of a man rising from a morgue table that users reframed as leaked Chinese CCTV footage. By August 2022, TikToks about the fake outbreak drew millions of views before Newsweek debunked the trend.
## Origin
On July 16, 2021, military culture site We Are The Mighty published an opinion piece by Ruddy Cano titled "This is how a zombie apocalypse is most likely to start in China." Cano argued the CCP would suppress an outbreak out of a face-saving instinct, the same way the Soviet Union hid Chernobyl, and would then profit from a zombie vaccine[1].
The second ingredient appeared in January 2022, when the Russian IVI original series Hello Again! debuted its first episode featuring a man rising naked from a morgue table around the 9:20 mark[4]. On or around January 24, 2022, a now-suspended Reddit user reposted a static CCTV-style angle of the scene, and Headline News reuploaded it the same day on YouTube as "Dead Man Wake Up in Morgue, Russia CCTV"[5]. An American Post write-up on January 25 noted commenters were already doubting its authenticity[6], and a January 29 /r/oddlyterrifying thread drew over 7,300 upvotes[7].
- **Platform:** We Are The Mighty (source article) / TikTok (viral spread)
- **Creator:** Unknown
- **Date:** 2021
## Overview
Posts riding the trend typically use a black-and-white still of a man sitting up from a covered morgue table, captioned to suggest it shows China's first zombie case or that the Chinese government is hiding an outbreak[1]. Creators often added breathless commentary about CCP censorship, while others filmed ironic reaction videos joking that anyone believed the rumor at all[2].
The Zombies In China hoax borrows directly from a July 2021 We Are The Mighty opinion piece arguing a zombie virus would spread fastest under a government that lies to save face, citing the 1986 Chernobyl cover-up and quoting Max Brooks' World War Z[3]. That argument gave the hoax a pseudo-geopolitical hook, which is why many of the viral TikToks mix horror movie panic with jokes about Chinese secrecy[2].
## How to Use
A standard post lifts the morgue still or a short clip from the Hello Again! scene and attaches a caption claiming it shows a Chinese zombie or that the Chinese government is covering up an outbreak. Creators commonly layered on frantic voiceovers, text overlays about CCP censorship, or stitched reaction videos ridiculing anyone who fell for the rumor.
## Frequently Asked Questions
### What is Zombies In China?
Zombies In China is a 2022 TikTok hoax claiming a zombie outbreak was happening in China and being covered up by the government, driven by a Russian comedy clip reframed as leaked CCTV footage[2].
### Where did Zombies In China come from?
The hoax traces back to a July 16, 2021, We Are The Mighty opinion piece by Ruddy Cano arguing a zombie apocalypse would most likely start in China[1], paired with a January 2022 scene from the Russian IVI series Hello Again![4].
### What does Zombies In China mean?
It refers to the viral but false claim that a Chinese zombie outbreak was underway in 2022, built on a mix of conspiracy writing about CCP secrecy and misidentified Russian TV footage[1][3].
### How do you use Zombies In China?
Posters typically share the Hello Again! morgue still or clip with captions suggesting it shows a Chinese zombie case or a government cover-up, or film reaction videos mocking people who believed the rumor[8][9].
### Is Zombies In China still popular?
No, the trend peaked on TikTok in August 2022 and faded quickly after Newsweek and HITC covered it as a hoax[2][13].
## References
1. [https://www.wearethemighty.com/articles/this-is-how-a-zombie-apocalypse-is-most-likely-to-start-in-china/]()
2. [https://www.newsweek.com/tiktok-frantic-zombies-china-trends-viral-moment-explained-1732038]()
3. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/zombies-in-china]()
4. [https://www.ivi.tv/watch/i-snova-zdravstvujte]()
5. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stR3NLVBXj0]()
6. [https://www.americanpost.news/video-of-a-corpse-coming-back-to-life-goes-viral-on-social-media/]()
7. [https://www.reddit.com/r/oddlyterrifying/comments/sff1hj/second_chance/]()
8. [https://www.tiktok.com/@pessilencieuxx/video/7097729358470597893]()
9. [https://www.tiktok.com/@whyarehumansliketheyare/video/7127260130999061766]()
10. [https://www.tiktok.com/@ykgsm/video/7129279798689565998]()
11. [https://twitter.com/minasluvbot/status/1556637693324451841]()
12. [https://twitter.com/jjujube_/status/1556688827443339264]()
13. [https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2022/08/10/tiktok-users-actually-think-there-are-zombies-in-china-and-these-reactions-are-hilarious/]()
14. [https://www.tiktok.com/@sheluvscee.1zz/video/7129944217035508998]()
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Source: https://meme.com/memes/zombies-in-china
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