Executive Producer Yoshimi Yasuda’s string of Lollipop Chainsaw behind-the-scenes details continues with a discussion about the game’s characters. While the idea of a cute cheerleader fighting zombies in a B-movie setting was conceived early on, difficulties arose when it came to naming the protagonists.
According to Yasuda, the name “Juliet” came up when the developers at Grasshopper Manufacture reflected on her status as an American high school cheerleader.
After settling on Juliet’s name, they naturally wanted to name her boyfriend “Romeo” (as a reference to the famous Shakespearean tragedy). Unfortunately, the publishers at Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment told the developers that “Romeo” was seen as an uncool name in the United States. This led Grasshopper Manufacture to rename the character “Nick,” which stuck in the final game.
Considering Nick’s importance in the story and how often he interacts with the player (his severed head hangs off Juliet’s hip for most of the story), things might have been a little different had he been named “Romeo.” There might have been more Romeo and Juliet references in the game.
Lollipop Chainsaw RePOP (a 2024 remake of the 2012 original) is available for the PC (Steam), PS4/PS5, Xbox One/Xbox Series X❘S, and Nintendo Switch.
