As a queer person who loves all kinds of horror movies, perhaps especially post-apocalyptic survival tales, I was thrilled to hear about the upcoming film, Queens of the Dead, which is being described as a “big gay zombie movie.”
If you, too, are a fan of zombie apocalypse movies, you may have heard of George A. Romero, creator of such classics as Night of the Living Dead. This queer spin on the genre has been taken on by his daughter, Tina Romero. Tina (who wrote this movie with Erin Judge) was inspired to create this when one of the co-promoters of Hot Rabbit (an NYC-based queer dance party) broke off to make a rival event, and the original poster asked, “When will the queer community stop devouring its own?” Suddenly Tina knew she could bring her own unique voice to the genre she grew up watching her dad play in. In fact, the movie will use his vocabulary and play by his “rules.”
Queens of the Dead follows Dre (Katy O’Brian), a — you guessed it — party promoter trying to host a queer warehouse rave and drag show when the zombie outbreak starts. She’s joined by a gaggle of gays played by such icons as Margaret Cho, Jack Haven, Dominique Jackson, Nina West, Julie J, Shaunette Renée Wilson, Riki Lindhome and more.
They didn’t have a big budget, and they had to borrow Katy O’Brian from filming Mission: Impossible, but they had that scrappy spirit queer people tend to have and they made it work, and I can’t wait to see how it turned out.
Queens of the Dead premieres on June 7 at the Tribeca Film Festival.
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+ Rosie O’Donnell played a lesbian nun on And Just Like That
+ Miley Cyrus talked about her career changing, being a real life Hannah Montana, regretting some of her tattoos, not wanting to be a mom, and more in an in-depth interview
+ Stranger Things has dropped a date announcement teaser for its fifth and final season
+ Mini Spice Girls reunion alert! Mel C and Emma joined Mel B for her 50th birthday celebration, decked out in Scary Spice leopard print
+ CW has renewed All American for its eighth and final season
+ Cynthia Erivo talks playing a queer character while she was coming out, advice for queer people in these tumultuous times, and more
+ V. E. Schwab had me at “toxic lesbian vampires”
+ Lady Gaga will guest star on the upcoming second season of Wednesday on Netflix, which absolutely tracks, in my opinion
+ Hacks was always supposed to be five seasons, but now that they’re breaking the fifth season…they might need more time to get to their planned ending (and I’m okay with that)
+ Maria Bello filed for divorce from her wife of one year
+ Reneé Rapp tried polyamory once but it wasn’t for her; she’s all about monogamy with Towa Bird
+ Rapp also says her house is basically a “lesbian frat house” and that her and her gaggle of queer friends “have an agreement to help protect the most marginalized and vulnerable among them.
+ Clea Duvall reflects on But I’m a Cheerleader 25 years later
