Lady Gaga Becomes a Doll in Tim Burton-Directed ‘The Dead Dance’ Video

Lady Gaga, long recognized for her Protect the Dolls campaign advocating trans rights, now channels her theatrical flair into a spine-tingling new music video.

On September 3, the pop icon premiered the video for “The Dead Dance,” a track featured in Season 2 of Netflix’s Wednesday. Under the direction of Tim Burton, Gaga appears as a fractured porcelain doll, awakening amid a graveyard of animated figures before breaking into a macabre, yet mesmerizing, choreography.

“’Cause when you killed me inside, that’s when I came alive,” she intones, flanked by zombified dolls moving in unison. “I’m dancin’ until I’m dead.” The haunting visuals and Gaga’s commanding presence bring the song’s themes of resurrection through music vividly to life.

Simultaneously, Gaga released a deluxe edition of her 2025 album Mayhem, adding “The Dead Dance” along with bonus tracks “Kill for Love” and “Can’t Stop the High,” previously available only on special physical releases.

Written expressly for Wednesday, “The Dead Dance” accompanies Gaga’s portrayal of Rosaline Rotwood—a spectral former instructor at Nevermore Academy who allies with Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) in her quest to protect her family and friends. The latter half of the season dropped the same day.

Speaking to Billboard, composer Chris Bacon lauded Gaga’s multifaceted talent. “Scoring her scenes was exhilarating,” he said. “She carries an intrinsic mystique—dark yet magnetic—that fit perfectly within the Wednesday universe.”

Watch the official video for “The Dead Dance” above.

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