Name: Queens of the Dead director Tina Romero reveals why Santa scares her
Uploaded: 2025-11-01T13:10:35.731Z
Duration: 4 min 22 s
Description: With her debut feature Queens of the Dead, Tina Romero continues a family legacy of zombie love. George A. Romero, as a dad and a filmmaker, loved a good practical effect.

With her debut feature Queens of the Dead, Tina Romero continues a family legacy of zombie love. George A. Romero, as a dad and a filmmaker, loved a good practical effect.

Tina Romero, director of 'Queens of the Dead,' shared insights into her unconventional childhood, revealing that her father's creative and detailed approach to playing Santa Claus had a greater impact on her than the presence of zombies. Romero explained that her father would go to great lengths to build elaborate stories and scenarios around Santa, making the experience deeply immersive for her and her siblings.

She recounted specific memories, such as her father's use of props, staged events, and even rigged home videos to maintain the illusion of Santa's visits. Romero noted that while zombies were a regular part of her upbringing due to her father's influence, it was the intricate fantasy world of Santa Claus that truly shaped her childhood fears and imagination.

'Queens of the Dead' director Tina Romero reveals why Santa scares her

People do ask me all the time like here was your childhood up and I say no no, no It wasn't the zombies that messed me up. It was Santa Claus because my dad was a really creative detail oriented wonderful Santa Claus and That that's that's nothing to do with zombies But I do tell people that I sat on a zombie's lap before I met him all Santa Let's talk about your pathway to zombies I'd love to know about Well, yeah, like we're here to talk Queens of the dead, but I'd like to know about the path there So what was your first experience with a zombie movie? Oh my god. I don't even remember my first experience the zombie I just kind of grew up and with like there are certain things that exist Santa Claus exists zombies exists to the fairy exists all because of my dad, you know People people do ask me all the time like here was your childhood up and I say no no No, it wasn't the zombies that messed me up. It was Santa Claus because my dad was a really creative detail oriented wonderful Santa Claus and That that's that's nothing to do with zombies But I do tell people that I sat on a zombie's lap before I met him all Santa So they just always were they were just always were and I didn't find them particularly scary because they had to do with my dad Sure there were other things in my life that scared me like fluffies crate from creepshow was in my dad's office and it had Dried blood on it and chains and I knew it was fake, but I wasn't convinced that fluffy wasn't in there Do you remember what your first horror movie was that you watched I think it was Close Encounters of the Third Kind Oh, and I think it was before five. There was no. Yeah, there was no censorship No, I didn't believe in it. And it was like if it was on it was on and we were watching it No, totally. I want to circle back because I you said he was a very detail oriented Santa Claus. Yes I want to hear more about that. Well Santa always had, you know, it wasn't so much about the gifts It was about the story of Santa's life. It was about the story of Santa's life Always had, you know, it wasn't so much about the gifts. It was about the story of Santa's like His trials and tribulations and he always had some kind of drama getting into the house. There was one year. He left his wallet and you know poor Santa had everything in there the cash from currency from all over the world his International driving permit made up Santerio Claus with a photo he had pictures of me and Martha Leningrad 92 Dash on his 100th birthday a Frequent a frequent shopper card at the Hallmark Center Rothschild big and tall card reindeer feed shop There was a like the that's what I say But the details is like the fantasy that my dad would create in these little and I actually later in my adult life Realized I learned that he had taken His mother after she passed her wallet and he kind of took that and modified all these things Into this like and when I could see the whiteout now on the credit card like oh I see the name But and so maybe it was his like some kind of way of coping with her death Perhaps by turning it into some kind of creativity, but for us as kids. It was really it was really wonderful I mean there was one year he couldn't get down the chimneys or in Florida There were no chimneys to get down and it was like where you know And we found we eventually found a little piece of red fabric coming out of this attic thing and we pulled it down and there was like a stocking that fell down and When my brother I believed in Santa like for way too long and embarrassing to be fair Yeah, the commitment to the bit the commitment to the bit I am talking like, you know Always the the cookies were eaten but then there were there were just these special special details if there was a note It was like a wax with a press. It was so and My brother is a different kid than I am and he was like at two He was like, I don't know about this Santa thing and I was like, what are you talking about? Santa's totally real and and my dad was like, well, what do you want to do about it? then in my brother suggested that we set up a camera and so They put a camera at the top of the staircase and at like in real time. Let it play out So they waited until like 3 a.m. And my dad had his friend come in like pillow under the suit Come in do the thing at the tree leave and then he rigged a lighting outside our house So that there was like a silly gobo with like a silhouette of a slave taking off outside the window Like he did a full-on production. It's a man. And so the next morning they're watching the tape and my brother's like, okay, you know Yeah, he's gonna believe for a couple more years

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