The Stars of Romero’s Glitter-Soaked Zombie Comedy Discuss Love, Laughter, and Surviving the Apocalypse
When love, chaos, and the undead collide, you get Queens of the Dead, a zombie horror-comedy that blends heart, humor, and glitter-fueled gore. Directed by Tina Romero and starring Katy O’Brien (The Mandalorian, Love Lies Bleeding) and Riki Lindhome (Wednesday, Another Period), the film follows a group of friends navigating both the drama of their lives and the apocalypse with sharp wit and surprising warmth.
Dolores Quintana sat down with O’Brien and Lindhome to talk about the film’s playful energy, their dynamic characters, and why Queens of the Dead is more than your average zombie flick.
Dolores Quintana: I just wanted to ask: what was it like filming this movie? It looks like a lot of fun, and I’m wondering if you all were having fun while making it.
Katy O’Brien: Yeah, yeah, it was. It was like every second was super fun. I don’t even know how we got it done because I feel like we were joking around a good chunk of the time.
Riki Lindhome: I know what happened. Laughs. I was only there for like three days.
Katy O’Brien: Really?
Riki Lindhome: I came in at the end. They’d already done the majority of it. We had a day in the hospital, a day in the car, and then the ending we shot, and I think that was it. So mine was pretty fast.
Dolores Quintana: The movie, you know, obviously it’s a zombie film, obviously a horror film, but it’s also hilarious. And you both did such a great job with that. Can you tell me a little about your characters?
Riki Lindhome: So, I’m Dre’s wife. I’m a nurse, and I’m pregnant. I’ve got all these big life events happening while these huge world events are happening. My whole thing is just getting to Dre, that’s all I want to do. Then I met Jane and brought her with me. But that’s really my character’s journey. I want to start my family.
Dolores Quintana: You’re already kind of being a mom during the zombie apocalypse, getting those skills ready. The mother instincts are kicking in already.
Katy O’Brien: Dre is trying to keep everyone together, all while she definitely doesn’t have her sh*t together. The film is really an exercise in her trying to grow up and take responsibility. Finding out that they’re having a baby is a big turning point, realizing, “Okay, club life, all of that, is not the priority anymore.” Everything becomes about the relationship and the baby.
Having that extra responsibility gives her perspective, and then, of course, there’s an apocalypse. I remember Quincy and me talking through that scene where he reveals Lizzie’s pregnant, and I was like, “That’s great timing, why not right now?” Laughs. But also, we have to make a crib!
Dolores Quintana: The film is scary, but it’s also sweet and has a lot of heart. You really care for all the characters. It’s not one of those zombie movies where you’re hoping someone gets eaten next. Did that come from working with Tina as a director, or from the cast dynamic?
Katy O’Brien: Well, honestly, on the page, if I’m being totally honest, I kind of didn’t like the character Nico. But what Tomás Matos brought to Nico made the character very lovable and human. There were a few roles like that. Where, if the wrong person played them, it could’ve been a disaster.
But each actor came in and brought something beautiful to their part. And Tina knew that. She wrote it that way and cast it that way; she knew exactly what she wanted.
Riki Lindhome: I also love that you don’t know who’s going to die. Usually, horror movies set up all those tropes like “the person who has sex dies”. But here, it’s really all fair in an apocalypse, and you can’t tell who’s next.
Katy O’Brien: And a lot of us survived, which is rare!
Dolores Quintana: It’s vicious when it has to be, but it’s also really sweet. It captures that cultural thing where you can say something cutting to someone you love, and it’s actually affectionate.
So to wrap up, what’s one thing you want audiences to know about Queens of the Dead?
Riki Lindhome: I want people to know it’s just a fun movie. It’s fun to watch in a theater, fun to see with a crowd. It’s got that Rocky Horror element where you want to experience it with people and laugh together.
Katy O’Brien: It’s not one of those “thinking cap” movies. You don’t have to worry about being scared. You can just relax and enjoy the ride.
I’ll also say the crew was incredible. We had such a small team, and what they pulled off was amazing. When I finally saw the film, I was blown away, just knowing the budget and time they had.
Dolores Quintana: It looks great, even the zombies are fabulous!
Katy O’Brien: They pulled in so many favors for all that glitter, paint, and prosthetics. It really was an act of love from the community and the crew. They made miracles happen.
