
Separately, legendary horror film director George A. Romero died in Toronto on Sunday, July 16, 2017, from lung cancer at age 77. Romero started the modern zombie genre in 1968 with his low-budget classic Night of the Living Dead, which he followed up with five more Dead movies and two remakes. Romero's zombies were always social or political commentary, stand-ins for perceived political or societal ills, including racism, conformity, materialism and mall culture, and class warfare.