Greg Nicotero


Gregory Nicotero is an American special make-up effects creator, television producer, and director. His first major job in special effects makeup was on the George A. Romero film Day of the Dead, under the tutelage of Romero and make-up effects veteran Tom Savini.
In 1988, along with Robert Kurtzman and Howard Berger, he formed KNB EFX Group, a special make-up effects studio which has gone on to work on over 400 film and television projects. KNB has won numerous awards, including an Emmy Award in 2001 for their work on the 2000 Sci Fi Channel miniseries Frank Herbert's Dune and an Academy Award in 2006 for achievement in makeup for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
He served as an senior producer/executive producer, special make-up effects supervisor, and primary director on the AMC TV series The [Walking Dead (TV series)|The Walking Dead] and Fear the Walking Dead. Nicotero has directed 37 episodes of The Walking Dead and is the creator of the webseries The Walking Dead: Webisodes.
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Life and career

Nicotero claims he began taking an interest in special effects after viewing the film Jaws. He explains: "I kept thinking 'How the hell did they do that?! How'd they build a big giant shark that could eat people?!' So, between that movie, The Exorcist, Planet of the Apes, and of course all of the Universal horror movies I think Jaws and then later Dawn of the Dead were pretty much the two movies that did it for me." Nicotero began his career working in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, learning the trade of special make-up effects, also known as prosthetic makeup, from Tom Savini, an award-winning special effects and makeup artist, and helping on films by director George A. Romero.
While working on the 1985 Romero film Day of the Dead, he met Howard Berger, who would become one of his partners at KNB EFX Group. Nicotero relocated to Hollywood and moved in with Berger and Robert Kurtzman.
He later worked as FX artist on the 2010 film Predators and created a classic predator figure for the film.
Nicotero worked as special make-up effects supervisor, co-executive producer and occasional director for the TV series The Walking Dead, as well as acting in a few uncredited cameos. He was at San Diego Comic-Con for the show. He was a guest on Talking Dead on March 24, 2013, October 12, 2014, February 8, 2015, and February 14, 2016. He also supervises the make-up effects for Fear the Walking Dead.
In 2011, Nicotero was interviewed for the 2012 zombie special effects book "Blood Splatter: A Guide to Cinematic Zombie Violence, Gore and Special Effects" by author Craig W. Chenery.
He was a guest on the MythBusters Zombie Special on October 17, 2013.
He designed a Leatherface skin for the 2023 game - The Texas Chain Saw Massacre that bears his name, known as "Nicotero Leatherface". It was released October 24, 2023.
In 2025, Nicotero developed and hosted the reality television show Guts & Glory on Shudder.

Filmography

Actor

The Walking Dead

Director

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon