🔗 Share this article

Within the LGBTQ+ comedy-horror Queens of the Dead, among the opening dialogue exchanges is spoken by performer and drag artist the character Julie Jay, who spots a trail of blood while searching for her new romantic encounter in a deserted church. "This is not a George Romero movie!" she shouts. Moments later, as she ventures deeper into the church, a sexy undead clergyman lunges at her.

On the surface, that line might seem provocative, even defensive — particularly coming from a film directed by Tina Romero, daughter of George A. Romero, a cinematic legend called the father of the undead film category.

But as Tina Romero clarifies, it wasn’t a expression of defiance — it was intended to pay tribute to the heritage her father established.

"That line seemed important to me, since I understood this was to some extent a gamble, to enter this sandbox that he created. I am very honored and responsible to carry on the Romero zombie into 2025. And I wanted to adhere to his rules and his creature and the spirit of him as much as possible," Romero says.

It’s easy to understand the reason. George A. Romero’s zombie films are iconic, setting a genre standard with their social commentary and gruesome, memorable visuals. Having such a family history leaves Romero with much to uphold in Queens of the Dead.

A Distinct Type of Undead

Tina's debut movie is centered on zombies, but it’s nonetheless notably distinct from her father’s work. George A. Romero’s zombies are pale and gray; they shamble along as if intoxicated, with dark-rimmed eyes, pale pupils, and foaming mouths. Queens of the Dead’s zombies, by contrast, are dressed to the nines, with a sparkling sheen to their mottled corpses, and eyes that because of the movie’s barely-there budget are as lifelike as they were when living. The zombies in Night of the Living Dead or Dawn of the Dead are designed to scare viewers at a glance, but Queens of the Undead's zombies evoke the audience that there was formerly something human there. A being with great style, as this is a film set around the queer club scene of New York's Bushwick.

That obvious visual divergence comes from Romero's wish to put her own mark on the category.

"We are so different visually. I'm a somewhat more of an idealist. So I truly wanted to present myself as a filmmaker and call out the reality that this is not a George Romero movie," Romero explains. "I really do feel like this is a movie he could never make. I was pleased to do a zombie film, but I didn't want to do it unless I could do it in a way that felt Tina. There's choreography, there's soundtrack, there's outfits, and all these elements speak to me as a director, while also managing to captivate people with zombies."

Carrying the Torch

It’s a significant challenge, taking on the legacy that her father ignited. George A. Romero’s zombie films examine materialism and address racism, classism, and societal conflicts, raising them above most zombie entertainment. And they’re culturally important as well. With Queens of the Dead, Romero isn’t shy about including her personal portion of social themes, though her emphasis is not so much on America devouring itself, and rather on the LGBTQ+ community attacking each other.

"This concept came to me in a burst, in a bolt of lightning," Romero said. "I spent many years in the LGBTQ+ nightlife scene of New York City as a DJ, and there was a promoter riff where one promoter wrote online, ‘How long until the queer community stop consuming its own?’ And that's the origin of the idea. When I read that sentence, I knew I wanted to use LGBTQ+ clubs as a perspective into the zombie apocalypse." This theme may not be as broad as some of the themes her father’s movies explore, but it certainly incorporates the political spirit that made his films so influential.

"I do feel like his spirit is in the film. So it's dual." Romero concludes. "It is a Romero movie, but it's not a George Romero movie."

---

Queens of the Dead debuts in theaters on October 24.