- "They are coming to get you, Barbara!"
- —Johnny
Johnny Jones (also Johnnie) is a character from George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead, the 1990 remake and the remake from 2006.
Biography[]
Night of the Living Dead (1968)[]
Johnny and Barbara drive to a cemetary outside of Pittsburg to put a wreath on their father's grave. While there, he becomes somewhat cynical and even pestering Barbara like he did when they were children. Unfortunately however, when Barbara is attacked by a zombie in the cemetery, he doesn't hesitate to defend her, only for himself to be killed in the process. It's revealed later that he was infected following his encounter with the zombie.
Night of the Living Dead (1990)[]
Johnny and Barbara are driving to the cemetery to visit their mother's grave, in the 3 months since she died and along the way, he pokes fun at Barbara still being scared, while also being cynical along the way. He eventually does stop when Barbara comes under attack by a zombie and comes to her aid. He's accidentally stabbed by her, however he hits his head on a nearby stone, which kills him. Sometime after, Barbara finds his dead body in the back of a pick up truck, indicating that he did turn and come back as a zombie.
Night of the Living Dead 3D (2006)[]
Johnny is driving to the funeral of his aunt with Barbara in the passenger seat and both end up discussing their aunt, plus how their mom hated her sister. Once there, they find none of their relatives, nor priest nearby in the cemetery. Not long after however, Johnny is attacked by 2 zombies, leading him to flee the scene in his car and leaving Barbara behind. Realizing that he left her, Johnny texts her and says he's coming back for her. True to his word, he comes back for her, but is zombified, leading to him being killed.
George Romero's Empire of the Dead (2014)[]
In the 2014 comic book by George C. Romero, it was revealed by Barbara and Johnny's younger sister, Penny Jones, that her sister had survived a single night in a house with 6 others, but when their defenses were taken down, Barbara encountered an infected Johnny. Despite now being a zombie however, Johnny didn't harm her, nor did he allow any other zombie to harm her. He even protected her from a barrage of gunfire, which eventually killed him.
Characteristics[]
Physical Appearance[]
Johnny is a Caucasian male, somewhere between his 20s-late 30s, depending on the remake being followed. In the original film, he has blond hair, while in later films, his hair is either brown or jet black. In all remakes, the character is seen wearing glasses. He is typically seen in a suit or some kind of semi-formal wear while he is on his way to visit the grave of his relative. He is also older than Barbara and Penny.
Personality & Traits[]
Depending on what remake is followed, Johnny's personality has changed somewhat, but remaining mostly consistent. As the older brother, he's known to be mischievous and cynical, even when it comes to his family. It was revealed that when he was a kid in both the original and the 1990 remake, that he would antagonize Barbara out of amusement. Even when he's older, he realizes she's still as timid as she was back when they were kids. His cynical nature comes up when he admits that he doesn't remember his father, nor what he looks like in the original. In the 1990 remake, he shows that he's spending more time going up to his mother's grave, stating he's spending more time with her than when she was alive. In the remake from 2006 however, he's even more cynical, tired of his mother's antics, stating that she never liked her sister, Johnny and Barbara's aunt. In both the original and 1990 remake, Johnny was hell-bent on protecting Barbara, despite having annoyed her initially, while in the 2006 film, he actually gets attacked by a pair of zombies and flees the cemetery, leaving Barbara behind. In the comic Empire of the Dead, it was revealed that even when he was a zombie in 1968, he protected Barbara from being harmed by other zombies and armed civilians, while also not harming her.
Trivia[]
- The most famous line in the movie is Johnny's: "They are coming to get you, Barbara", said to his sister.