‘Zombies 4’ Star Sway Bhatia Confirms Meg Donnelly Is The Most Active Person On The Group Chat: “She Loves Sending Random Memes”

Sway Bhatia is not your typical teenager. After standout roles in major series like HBO’s Succession and Disney’s The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers, Bhatia has established herself as one of the most exciting young actresses in Hollywood. So, it was only a matter of time before she became part of one of Disney’s major franchises. In Zombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires, Bhatia plays Vera, the right-hand vamp of Victor (Malachi Barton), who has his back during the impending war over the blood fruit orchard—their people’s only food source—with their rival tribe, the Daywalkers.

For Bhatia, watching the Zombies franchise grow was a “special” experience because her good pal Meg Donnelly was at the helm. “She was my first friend who I saw make it big,” explained Bhatia. However, the film series’ co-lead Milo Manheim also saw something in Bhatia. After the two bonded at the Prom Pact premiere, Manheim “manifested” that Bhatia would be in Zombies 4. As soon as she got the audition, Bhatia knew that “Milo Manheim predicted my future.” That was the beginning of Bhatia’s “very exciting, very emotional, very surreal journey.”

Chandler Kinney was one of the Zombies stars that Bhatia was most excited to work with. Kinney plays the werewolf Willa in the films. Internet fans are obsessed with the “fang out” sequence between Vera and Willa as they bare their sharp teeth at each other. “I still pinch myself every time I see that scene,” said Bhatia. “Chandler is like God to me, so getting to do that with her was so special.” Over the course of filming, Bhatia revealed that Kinney has become a “big sister” to her and that their bond is still strong. Bhatia even got to support Kinney during her iconic run on last season’s Dancing With The Stars. “She’s become a very special person in my life,” said Bhatia.

Bhatia stopped by the Decider studio to talk about studying for the SATs while filming, getting to be among the few to taste a blood fruit, and a potential fifth movie.

DECIDER: As a self-proclaimed Disney buff, how psyched were you to join the Zombies franchise with Zombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires?



SWAY BHATIA: Oh, it was unreal. I’ve been a fan of the Zombies franchise for forever. I actually grew up with Meg Donnelly in the city. We did Off-Broadway together. So, I loved Zombies from the start because I was so proud of Meg. She was my first friend who I saw make it big. It was special to watch the franchise grow and gain a huge fan base.

I first met Milo Manheim as a fan at the Prom Pact premiere. I walked up and I was like: “Hi, love Zombies. I know Meg, but I’m just like a huge fan of yours.” He was like: “Oh, that’s so sick. You know Meg, so we’re automatically friends.” He then told me there was another Zombies movie happening. He was like, “you’re going to be in it.” I didn’t believe him at first, but as soon as I got the audition for Zombies 4, I was like, “there’s no way that Milo Manheim predicted my future.” He totally did [laughs]. He absolutely manifested it. It was very special for me to see these incredible characters that I had grown up watching come to life. It’s a very exciting, very emotional, and very surreal journey for me.

Your character Vera is Victor’s closest confident and is just so cool. Fans are loving her loyalty and “take no BS” personality. What drew you to her?

She’s just so sassy! Also, I loved how true to herself she stayed throughout the the movie. There were some moments in the script where I was like: “why did you have to do that? Why did you have to instigate?” [Laughs] But nobody’s perfect! No matter what was thrown at Vera, she was always by Victor’s side. I loved getting to play her, and the role pushed me a lot as an actor because I had to bring out my own sassiness, a side of me that my mom doesn’t quite enjoy.

I’ve never played a vampire before. Our director, Paul Hoen, really stressed how important being a vampire is to Vera. As she says in the movie, “if I’m not living in the nightlife, I’m not living the right life.” I know a lot of people love that line, and I live by it now [laughs]. We got the fang out down and now it’s just like in my body. I’m like 1% vampire now, so just be aware.

Vera’s look is frankly iconic with her black and red ensemble and streaked hair. Did you have input into the hair/makeup/wardrobe of the character?

It was definitely a long process. Her look started a little bit more costume-y, and I loved that they really took the time to make her feel a little bit more human in a way. We slowly brought her down to earth as the journey went on. Her hair became a little less wiggy. We ended up dying my hair and putting it into a ponytail that people could recreate at home. It was important to all of us that kids at home could look up to her and copy her look. Just the other day, my cousin come over and she was like: “Oh look, I’m dressed up as Viera today.” She had her hair up with the two strands around her face and a t-shirt with some red accents on it. That’s exactly what we all wanted to happen.

Fans on social media are loving the bond between Vera and Vargas, and it’s very clear that you and Mekonnen Knife are good friends in real life. What can you tell me about your offscreen friendship?

I always say that he’s my twin flame. He’s like the brother that I never had. It’s hard to describe him in only a few words. He’s hysterical. Like, if you put on a comedy special, it’s still not as funny as M.K., the person. If I need a laugh, I will call M.K., and he will lift my spirits. He’s just such a genuine person. I’m grateful to have met him. This cast has become such a blessing in my life. I’ve also been through some hardships with college and stuff. They were always reassuring me, saying, “okay, you’re going to get in somewhere.” And I did get in somewhere, so thank God [laughs]. We’ve all gone from strangers to family, which is very awesome.

You were still in school while filming Zombies 4. What was it like to balance homework with the work on set?

Everyone was so nice. After work, I would usually go home and practice SATs or something, which was not fun. The cast would always invite me to things so I never felt left out. It was my junior year of high school so I was always doing school work when I wasn’t filming. On Saturdays I would have 3 a.m. SATs call with my tutor in Jersey, which definitely was a little bit draining. The day after I got back from New Zealand was the day I took my SATs, which was such a bad idea because I was so jet lagged. I definitely had to take it again [laughs]. So, if you’re going to take your SATs, do not study with someone in one country while you are in another country. I don’t recommend it.

One of my favorite moments of the film is when Vera and Willa have a fang off. What was it like to film that with Chandler Kinney?

I still pinch myself every time I see that scene. Chandler is like God to me, so getting to do that with her was so special. Willa was one of my favorite Zombies characters. She’d always been someone that I wanted to be for Halloween. Three years ago, I went up to her as a fan at an event and got a photo with her. Three years later, we’re working together. When we had that scene, it was cool getting to see her become a werewolf in front of me and then having to play it back to her. She’s become like a big sister to me. Getting to see her thrive on Dancing With The Stars was very special. I got to go in person and see her. We’ve connected in many ways off screen, which I’m very grateful for. I have learned a lot from her.

Chandler and Milo have both done DWTS. Is that something you’d be interested in doing someday?

I would love to be on Dancing With The Stars. It has been a dream for a long time. I’m manifesting it. Milo has manifested it. Chandler has manifested it. They want me to break the Zombies runner-up curse. I even went up to Alfonso Ribeiro at the Zombies 4 premiere and told him I’m ready!

I know the Zombies cast is very, very close. Is there a group chat? And if so, who is the most active?

Meg’s the most active. She loves sending just random memes or photos or videos. That’s one of my favorite things about her. She’s obsessed with SpongeBob and Bluey. She’s got me on to Bluey. I love that show now. She’ll just send like a random photo of SpongeBob or like a random photo of Usher flying or Pink flying. We all went to the Pink concert together. It’s a very interesting group chat. Milo named it. He’s very proud of the name. It’s “New Z-land.” Very smart.

Did you get to take anything home from the Zombies set?

I didn’t ,and I’m so upset [laughs]. I wish I could go back in time. I know Freya got to take some blood fruit from set, which I’m a little bit salty about. I’m hoping that I will get an opportunity to steal a blood fruit in the future. I did, however, get to taste a blood fruit, which only the vampires got to do. The Daywalkers did not get to do that. I might not have a blood fruit, but I do know what it tastes like. So that’s very special to me.

So, what does a blood fruit taste like?

It’s very, very sweet. Sweeter than you think. It’s made out of popping boba and jello, so anyone can make it at home.

The movie ends on a cliffhanger. Would you be open to doing Zombies 5?

I’m so ready. Let’s go. I would love a fifth movie. I would love to see what monsters they introduce. I love this cast. I love this crew. I love the franchise. I love the fan base. I’m so down.

You are featured on a song from Megan Piphus called “Stop Me Now,” and you sound amazing. How did this collab come to be?

It was such a special moment for me. Megan reached out to me through an organization called Saving Our Daughters. I’m just very, very grateful to everyone involved with the collaboration. I got to be in the recording studio for the first time since Zombies 4. It was my first time working on a track outside of Disney, and they made it a very safe space for us to play with different riffs. I had the best time with the best producers. I’m very, very happy with the way it sounds.It’s just such an encouraging song.

It was also exciting to put my voice out there because not a lot of people know that I can sing. I’ve been training vocally for so long, I feel like only the New Yorkers know because I’ve been doing cabarets at 54 Below for my entire life. I am doing more cabaret soon, so maybe I’ll put out another song.

You’re also going to NYU in the fall! Are you looking forward to college?

Yes! I’m going to be studying filmmaking. A lot of my mentors went to NYU. I’ve been dreaming about NYU since I was born [laughs] at NYU Langone, so since I was little, I’ve felt I was destined to go there. I did some short films there as a kid, and I loved the campus. I loved the way that they teach film because they make you learn every aspect of filmmaking.