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Black Zombie

Play trailer 1:56 Poster for Black Zombie Sep 2026 1h 30m Documentary Horror Play Trailer Watchlist
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100% Tomatometer 46 Reviews Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
BLACK ZOMBIE digs beneath the blood-soaked spectacle of modern horror to uncover the zombie's buried and unsettling origins. Long before it became associated with flesh-eating ghouls, the zombie was a living metaphor for slavery: not a monster, but the ultimate victim of colonial power. A symbol of stolen agency was recast as an object of fear, while Black spiritual traditions were distorted, sensationalized, and erased. Director Maya Annik Bedward traces the evolution of the zombie from colonial Haiti to contemporary Hollywood, reconsidering iconic films like WHITE ZOMBIE, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, and THE SERPENT AND THE RAINBOW alongside archival footage, vérité scenes, and interviews with cultural historians, artists, and genre legends including Yves-Grégory Francois, Mambo Labelle Déesse, Slash, Tom Savini, and Zandashé Brown. Part cultural reckoning, part horror remix, BLACK ZOMBIE exposes how a figure born from enslavement, spiritual belief, and resistance was transformed into one of pop culture's most profitable monsters.
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Black Zombie

Black Zombie

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Critics Consensus

Black Zombie is a thought-provoking and restorative reexamination of the zombie myth that confronts its roots in racial exploitation while deepening — and even renewing — appreciation of the genre.

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Critics Reviews

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Katie Walsh FilmWeek (LAist) Sep 23, 2026
It should be required viewing for horror fans and people who like zombie movies. Go to Full Review Peyton Robinson RogerEbert.com Sep 15, 2026
3/4
While modern-day blind spots burden the film, 'Black Zombie’ stays true to its motivation: lifting the cloche on the erasure and exploitation that founded one of horror’s most iconic figures. Go to Full Review Lisa Kennedy New York Times Sep 10, 2026
In the ruins of a sugar plantation, this cultural multi-hyphenate performs a ritual dance, his rich voice beckoning the spirits — and viewers — like a hymn, like a restorative balm. Go to Full Review Glen Weldon Pop Culture Happy Hour (NPR Podcast) 5 hrs ago
This is a fascinating film. I mean, and its take is really, really smart. Go to Full Review Aisha Harris Pop Culture Happy Hour (NPR Podcast) 5 hrs ago
The way Bedward is able to sort of just connect all of these dots and interrogate the ways that zombie has evolved and changed and bring it back to its original origins, I think it's just really, really well done. Go to Full Review Marlon Wallace The M Report (WBOC.com) 4 days ago
What's interesting is that Bedward's film seeks to critique all that demonization from Hollywood. Yet, she doesn't let herself off the hook either. Go to Full Review Read all reviews
Black Zombie

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Cast & Crew

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Maya Annik Bedward

Director

Yves-Grégory Francois

Self

Tananarive Due

Self

Mambo Labelle Déese Botanica

Self

Slash

Self

Tom Savini

Self
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Black Zombie

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Black Zombie

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Movie Info

Synopsis BLACK ZOMBIE digs beneath the blood-soaked spectacle of modern horror to uncover the zombie's buried and unsettling origins. Long before it became associated with flesh-eating ghouls, the zombie was a living metaphor for slavery: not a monster, but the ultimate victim of colonial power. A symbol of stolen agency was recast as an object of fear, while Black spiritual traditions were distorted, sensationalized, and erased. Director Maya Annik Bedward traces the evolution of the zombie from colonial Haiti to contemporary Hollywood, reconsidering iconic films like WHITE ZOMBIE, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, and THE SERPENT AND THE RAINBOW alongside archival footage, vérité scenes, and interviews with cultural historians, artists, and genre legends including Yves-Grégory Francois, Mambo Labelle Déesse, Slash, Tom Savini, and Zandashé Brown. Part cultural reckoning, part horror remix, BLACK ZOMBIE exposes how a figure born from enslavement, spiritual belief, and resistance was transformed into one of pop culture's most profitable monsters.
Director
Maya Annik Bedward
Producer
Maya Annik Bedward, Hannah Donegan, Kate Fraser
Screenwriter
Maya Annik Bedward
Distributor
Kino Lorber
Production Co
Raven Banner Entertainment
Genre
Documentary, Horror
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 11, 2026, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 6, 2026
Box Office (Gross USA)
$31.4K
Runtime
1h 30m
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