George Romero's Daughter Helms a Gay Zombie Flick, with Her Father's Blessing

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Tina Romero, daughter of the legendary filmmaker George A. Romero, is set to make her directorial debut with Queens of the Dead, premiering at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 7th. The filmmaker recently chatted with Entertainment Weekly, reflecting on her father's profound influence.

"I am his kid. There’s no denying it. And he has influenced me greatly," Romero remarked. Queens of the Dead will feature a smattering of Easter eggs to honour her father's legacy. "And this is his monster, this is his genre. I had fun doing my little Romero nods throughout the film, and we have some good ones," she shared, including cameos from notable figures like makeup artist and actor Tom Savini and Dawn of the Dead star Gaylen Ross.

A Gay Take on the Undead
"The zombie apocalypse is such a rich sandbox to play in when it comes to social commentary. I can’t be my dad’s daughter without making an attempt at saying something with zombies," Romero told the magazine. "I did want this to be a film in which I am paying homage to the world and the monster he created, but I’m also introducing my own voice. It’s very much not a film he would make, but it is using his vocabulary and is playing by his rules. As far as the gay element, on one hand, I just feel like the gays need a zombie film. It’s time that we get to have a big gay zombie movie."

Romero stressed, "I didn’t want to touch the genre unless it felt authentic to me." Queens of the Dead centres on a night in the gay party scene, where the vibrant nightlife at a warehouse drag show is abruptly interrupted by the zombie apocalypse. The inspiration stemmed from intense social media spats amongst party promoters during her time as a DJ.

From DJ Booth to Zombie Apocalypse
Romero recounted, "The original promoter posted this manifesto begging the question, ‘When will the gay community stop devouring its own?’ And it hit me like a bolt of lightning. I was like, ‘Oh my God! This would be how I want to explore the zombie genre in this world of gay nightlife.’" Katy O’Brian, known for her role as a baddie in The Mandalorian, plays the fictionalised promoter who leads the film. Romero noted there's a special thanks to Tom Cruise in the credits for allowing them to take time off their Mission: Impossible shoot to film the horror flick.

Romero hopes the film will highlight the demand for more genre films that represent an intersection of gay scream queens, infused with that familiar flair for horror and dark comedy from her father’s roots. The legendary filmmaker didn’t get to see a completed script but mentored his daughter throughout the development process.

Romero shared, "He said, ‘I love it! Run with it. Go for it.’ Unfortunately, he never got to read the completed script because it took me about seven years to get this developed… but I did have this blessing."