“Patient Zero” Music Video
Worn On: 9/27/26
the commentary
The “Patient Zero” video opens in a cemetery. Indeed, tapping into the “elements of gothic ghost stories, true crime, psychological thrillers” that Taylor mentioned wanting to explore in her Instagram caption sharing behind-the-scenes snaps from the video’s set.
Not for the first time has Taylor placed the visual of her standing over her own grave in a music video. I found this parallel to the “Look What You Made Me Do” music video - which Taylor also chose the MTV VMAs to platform the premiere of all those years ago - to be quite haunting. Pun intended! Then, she posed as a resuscitated zombie shoveling dirt on the grave of her reputation. At the time, the framing was that it didn’t matter if the preconceived notion of who she was lay dead and buried under ground. What was more important was the quiet life she’d built once she was free from staying loyal to the restrictive idea of who that reputation limited her into being. It’s quite the chilling image to see her now, full circle, haunting that very same grave site in a much different place here in the “Zero” video.
Like much of the rest of the video’s somber costuming, I find myself dwelling on the lyric “I’m just getting color back into my face” and how intentional the very desaturated and bleak “Patient Zero” landscape of the past has been designed to look and feel worlds apart from her bright and vibrant present in the rest of Showgirl’s era aesthetics.
the clothes
Feature Photo by YouTube