George A. Romero's Day of the Dead is returning to theatres and drive-ins for its 40th anniversary (2025)

George A. Romero‘s first twoDeadmovies,Night of the Living DeadandDawn of the Dead, were quickly seen as horror classics. But the third film in his series, 1985’sDay of the Dead(watch itHERE), had a tougher time gaining acceptance. Many fans saw it as a disappointment, the weak link. It took years forDay of the Deadto be re-evaluated and viewed as a classic. These days, it’s fully embraced – and fans will have the chance to celebrate the 40th anniversary of this awesome movie when it comes back to theatres and drive-ins for a limited run that’s set to begin on July 1st!

As reported by our friends at Bloody Disgusting, Day of the Dead was first released in July 1985 and rolled out nationwide over the following months. Red Band Releasing will be celebrating the film’s 40th anniversary with showings across the country starting July 1 and running through Halloween, October 31st. The list of dates and theatres can be found atDAY40TH.COM, and the list will be updated every few days starting in mid-June. Red Band Releasing said, “If you don’t see a nearby screening listed at the site, contact your local independent theatres or drive-ins and tell them you want to seeDay of the Deadon the big screen for its 40th anniversary by contacting us at [emailprotected] for booking info. This grass-root campaigning for shows actually works! Last year we booked over 20 of the 100+ theatres spurred on by horror fans contacting their local venues!“

Written and directed by Romero, Day of the Dead has the following synopsis: The walking dead have taken over the world. Only a small band of scientists and solders are definitely known to remain, and they have taken refuge in an underground missile silo. The only hope for survival of the human race hinges on discovering a way to either control the walking dead, or get them back into their graves for good. Grotesque research experiments are being conducted by Dr. Logan, a borderline mad scientist, appropriately nicknamed Dr. Frankenstein by his associates. His most promising prospect for controlling the hordes of walking dead is one “guinea pig” zombie who seems to have a trace of humanity left in him. But the military leader soon discovers that some of his soldiers have been used as substitute guinea pigs in zombie experiments, and he retaliates by locking up the remaining scientific team with the zombies. Now, the remaining human survivors engage in a horrific last ditch battle for life with thousands of the walking dead. The result is the darkest day of horror the world has ever known… The film stars Lori Cardille, Terry Alexander, Joe Pilato, Jarlath Conroy, Richard Liberty, Anthony Dileo Jr., Howard Sherman, Gary Klar, Ralph Marrero, John Amplas, Phillip G. Kellams, Taso Stavrakis, and Greg Nicotero.