We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Rodney Barnes a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Rodney, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

More recently, my most meaningful project is the imprint I created Zombie Love Studios.

Rodney, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m an award winning writer, producer, and comic book creator known for my work across television (HBO’s Winning Time, American Gods, Wu-Tang: An American Saga), comic books (Marvel’s Falcon, Lando: Double or Nothing, Killadelphia, Batman: Full Moon, Crownsville), and graphic novels (Blacula: Return of the King, Florence and Normandie).

Born in Annapolis, Maryland, my childhood was filled with books, comic books, television, and film, particularly in the horror, science fiction, and hard drama categories – genres and works that resonate and influence my work to this day. I always dreamed of a career in screenwriting. During my time at Howard University in Washington, DC I worked as a production assistant on the films The Pelican Brief, Clear and Present Danger, Quiz Show, and Major League 2.

I was encouraged to venture to Los Angeles to pursue my writing dreams by actor and comedian Damon Wayans, whom I met while serving as a production assistant on the film Major Payne. I moved to Los Angeles and continued to work as a PA on films such as Blade starring Wesley Snipes and was a stand-in for actor Michael Clarke Duncan on the film The Green Mile, where I met my lifelong hero, famed horror author Stephen King.

During those earlier years Damon Wayans guided me through the industry, hiring me as a consultant, then later as a writer and producer, on ABC’s hit show My Wife and Kids from 2001 to 2005, for which I was nominated for a BET Comedy Award.

As they say the rest is history.

My work often explores cultural themes and I’m excited to continue that work through my new imprint Zombie Love Studios which will focus on horror and sci-fi projects. Keep an eye out for the website. It’s dropping early 2026.

With this new venture, I hope to be a voice in horror. You know how, places like Blumhouse have done a type of movie that feels like Blumhouse. Well, we want to tell stories that feel like Zombie Love stories, in the sense that they have a really clear voice that has some social relevance, but not to the point where it overwhelms the story.

I want human stories set in a horrific setting.

Those are the stories that I love and the ones I want to give the people.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

For a few years I commuted from my home in Maryland to Los Angeles for work. Got the journey down to three days. During my stays in LA I’d sleep in my car. On the promise of a potential employer I packed up my stuff with the idea of a permanent move. But when I got to LA he’d blocked my number. I ended up living in my car for about a year. I was tempted to go back to Maryland. But I stayed. And figured it out. Went from surviving to figuring out a career.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

Self expression. It’s cathartic. The ability to self assess through the work helps me make sense out of life. It took a minute to figure how to make that connection. Initially I approached “writing” as work. The exercise of the endeavor. As life moved on and I became more comfortable with myself, writing could be more personal. That’s the the most rewarding aspect of my career.

Contact Info:

• Website: Coming Soon
• Instagram: therodneybarnes
• Facebook: Rodney Barnes
• Linkedin: Rodney Barens
• Twitter: TheRodneyBarnes