Live, laugh, eat brains: Hanging out with TikTok’s zombie prosthetic girls

Witches, vampires, killer clowns (and soon Frankenstein, thanks to Guillermo del Toro) have all had recent cultural resurgences — but when will zombies get their flowers? Sure, they’re not exactly as sexy as their horror siblings, with the rotting flesh, lack of conversation skills, and chronic slobber problem, but they’ve lowkey been carrying the genre since the 1932 film White Zombie. The go-to survival hypothetical is always a zombie apocalypse – never “what would you do if you were captured by a witch?” or “which of your body parts would you donate to a Franken-monster?” (Though, honestly, I’d love to know everyone’s answers. Questions dropping soon in a smoking area near you.)

Horror prosthetics have existed as long as scary movies, but a new wave of extreme beauty fans are keeping the living dead alive year-round. One self-taught SFX MUA and lifelong zombie enthusiast leading the charge is 24-year-old Kamryn, better known online as Zombie Brooke. She first hit my TikTok feed as a 1969 housewife sitting in the salon chair, reading the Zombie Tribune while waiting for 1970 to arrive. Her most popular video – a zombified recreation of Victoria Justice – has racked up 3.7 million views. “Getting support from complete strangers has really touched my zombie heart,” she tells me.

“What I’ve learned from zombifying myself regularly is the more rotted and decayed you look, the more scary people will find your zombie,” Brooke explains. Her process blends her love of bygone decades with her obsession for the undead. Sourcing prosthetics from @mostlydeaddotcom or @infectedfx, she builds out either an original character or a monthly reimagining of a pop culture icon. Sometimes, she draws inspiration from legendary prosthetic artists like Rick Baker. “I brand myself as a vintage zombie who brings monsters from the old days back to life,” she says.

Brooke’s namesake character is her favourite: a zombie who was born in the 1950s as a pin-up, and time-travels through different decades. “I’ve always loved vintage make-up and I thought if I could combine my love for zombies and decades, it could really create something eye-catching: something that makes you wish you lived in that time period but in a horror way.” For Brooke, there is so much beauty to be found in this horror. “There is beauty in decay and the morbid, rotting and moulding as time goes on, even though you’re still the same person inside. We all eventually go, but being able to live a full life, creating the life you wanted and finally laying to rest: there is beauty in that.”

Self-taught SFX artist Zombri agrees. “The circle of life can be beautiful,” she says. Her prosthetic-based make-up looks use vintage aesthetics to reanimate the dead, often shot in locations that match the era. Her love for the style traces back to the Halloweens of her childhood. While her siblings went to their parents for help with costumes, Zombri crafted her own spooky transformations. “I could literally turn anything into a zombie and zombify it!”

Zombri’s favourite undead classic is Return of the Living Dead (1985), chosen for its gloriously camp prosthetics (exactly what you’d expect from an 80s B-movie made at the height of zombie mania). “I love creating make-up that genuinely feels unreal,” she says. “When you look at it, you feel like you’re in a different world. It makes you feel like there’s not only our earth, but another one out there filled with scary monsters.”

That same spirit runs through the SFX community on TikTok, which each October attracts even the clean-girl crowd into its orbit. “It really brings people together!” Zombri says. “The special effects community is huge, filled with so much talent that deserves to be seen and appreciated.” TikTok creators like Laura specialise in prosthetic creatures, while others, like Roachell – who works year-round at Disturbia Haunted House — bring zombies to life both online and off.

When the clock strikes midnight on November 1, most people return to the land of the living. But for Brooke, Zombri, and the rest of the undead beauty community, prosthetic SFX make-up isn’t just for Halloween – it’s forever. “More zombie movies, costumes and make-up!” as Zombri says.