What do you get when you combine Dracula, an army of zombies, a small American town and the gloriously excessive imagination of 1950s science-fiction filmmakers? Apparently, you get Vampire Zombies… From Space!, a Canadian horror-comedy that embraces everything from Ed Wood’s low-budget monster movies to the irreverent humor of Mel Brooks.
Directed by Mike Stasko and written with Jakob Skrzypa and Alex Forman, the film takes place in 1957, when the residents of Marlow discover that their community has become the target of Dracula’s latest scheme. This time, the Count isn’t content with finding a few unsuspecting victims or taking up residence in an abandoned castle. He’s arrived from outer space with plans to transform the townspeople into a vampire-zombie army capable of conquering the world.
Trying to stop him are Chief Ed Clarke, a veteran detective; Officer James Wallace, a rookie policeman; Wayne, a chain-smoking greaser; and Mary MacDowell, a young woman whose history with Dracula gives her a personal stake in the unfolding nightmare. The result is a collision of vampire mythology, zombie horror, alien-invasion movies and deliberately outrageous comedy.
A Horror Movie Born in High School
The origins of Vampire Zombies… From Space! stretch back considerably further than its festival debut in 2024. Skrzypa originally wrote the screenplay while he was in high school, with Forman participating in that early version. Years later, the two rediscovered the material and decided that the idea deserved another chance.
In 2018, they began revisiting the screenplay, eventually collaborating with Stasko to expand the story into a feature film. What started as a teenage fascination with monster movies evolved into a production involving professional actors, elaborate creature effects and an ambitious recreation of the science-fiction filmmaking techniques of the 1950s.
In their original crowdfunding campaign, the filmmakers explained that they wanted to combine their affection for old-school horror with the kind of exaggerated comedy associated with Mel Brooks and South Park. Rather than treating the limitations of vintage monster movies as something to avoid, they embraced them as part of the entertainment.
Monsters, Miniatures and Old-Fashioned Mayhem
Although the movie was produced with modern filmmaking equipment, its visual identity deliberately recalls an earlier era. Shot in black and white, Vampire Zombies… From Space! incorporates miniature effects, exaggerated monster imagery and the theatrical performances associated with vintage creature features.
The filmmakers’ crowdfunding materials emphasized practical effects, including elaborate vampire transformations and outrageous bodily destruction. The aim was to recreate the spectacle of old-fashioned horror movies while pushing the violence and comedy well beyond what audiences would have seen in a 1950s theatrical release.
The result is a film that belongs as much to the tradition of Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein as it does to the flying-saucer pictures and monster invasions of the atomic age. The distinction is that Stasko and his collaborators have made an R-rated comedy out of material that would once have been considered suitable for a Saturday afternoon monster matinee.
Among the film’s performers is Judith O’Dea, forever associated with her portrayal of Barbra in George A. Romero’s groundbreaking 1968 film Night of the Living Dead. Her appearance in Vampire Zombies… From Space! as Vampira provides a connection to one of the most influential zombie movies ever made. Also appearing are Lloyd Kaufman, the filmmaker and co-founder of Troma Entertainment, and David Liebe Hart of Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!, who plays Nosferatu.
The principal cast includes Andrew Bee, Rashaun Baldeo, Jessica Antovski, Oliver Georgiou and Craig Gloster, with Gloster portraying Dracula. It’s an ensemble that brings together emerging performers and familiar figures from cult horror and underground comedy.
From Film Festivals to Home Video
Vampire Zombies… From Space! made its way onto the festival circuit in 2024, collecting recognition at events devoted to independent horror and fantastic cinema. Its honors include Best Sci-Fi Feature at the New York City Horror Film Festival, Best Canadian Feature at the 2025 Victoria Film Festival and multiple awards at the 2024 Terror in the Bay Film Festival.
The movie has since reached home audiences through digital rental and purchase platforms, including Prime Video and Apple TV, as well as Blu-ray and DVD. Canadian theatrical screenings are also scheduled for October 26–29, 2026, providing another opportunity to experience its deliberately old-fashioned monster-movie spectacle on the big screen.
For viewers raised on Universal’s classic monsters, the science-fiction excesses of the 1950s or the peculiar charms of Ed Wood, Vampire Zombies… From Space! offers an unapologetically ridiculous combination of all three. Dracula has been portrayed as a seductive aristocrat, a tragic romantic figure and an embodiment of supernatural evil. Here, he’s apparently decided that conquering Earth with an army of vampire zombies is a perfectly reasonable next step.
The film’s official website features its trailer and upcoming screening information.