Rick Genest Height, Weight, Age, Body Statistics

Rick Genest was a well distinguished Canadian model, music artist, freakshow performer, and actor. He was noted for being dubbed as “Zombie boy” due to his bizarre appearance. Rick had a complete skeletal outlet tattooed throughout his body that gave him the appearance of a walking skeleton. He was sighted by the public for the first time in 2006, via BME‘s ModBlog. Not long after that, he was featured in an interview with RzyM’s Channel and that was when he started to earn recognition around the globe. After that, his career in the entertainment and modeling world took off when he was spotted by Lady Gaga’s stylist Nicole Formichetti and featured in her music video Born This Way (2011). He worked as a part-time model and was featured in ad campaigns for several brands including Mugler. He also made appearances in several films such as 47 Ronin (2013) and Carny (2009). Genest was also noted for holding a Guinness World Record for the most insects tattooed as well as for the most human bones tattooed. However, in 2018, his distinct feature was lost forever after he plunged to his death from his apartment in Plateau-Mont-Royal.

Born Name

Rick Genest

Nick Name

Zombie Boy, Rico, Rico The Zombie, Zombie

Age

Rick was born on August 7, 1985.

Died

Rick passed away on August 1, 2018, at the age of 32, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada after falling to his death from his Plateau-Mont-Royal apartment.

Sun Sign

Leo

Born Place

Châteauguay, Quebec, Canada

Residence

Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Nationality

Education

The details of Rick’s educational qualifications are unknown.

Occupation

Model, Actor, Freakshow Performer, Singer

Family

• Father – Roch Genest
• Mother – Catheryne Chappelle
• Siblings – He has 2 younger siblings.

Manager

As a model, Rick was represented by –

• Dulcedo Model Management – Montreal (Mother agency)
• Why Not Model Management – Milan
• IZAIO Management -Berlin
• Unique Models – Copenhagen

He was managed by Karim S. Leduc.

Genre

Rock

Label

Independent

Instruments

Vocals

Build

Slim

Height

5 ft 10 in or 178 cm

Weight

68 kg or 150 lbs

Girlfriend / Spouse

Rick has dated –

1. Imane Chaa – Rick was believed to have been secretly dating a Montreal based model named Imane Chaa. However, there have been no confirmations made to prove that information was true or just a rumor.

Race / Ethnicity

White

Hair Color

It is difficult to tell his hair color as he had tattoos covering his entire head.

Eye Color

Hazel

Sexual Orientation

Straight

Distinctive Features

His skeletal and ghoulish body tattoos

Brand Endorsements

Rick has done endorsement work for several brands such as Mugler and Jay-Z‘s Roc-A-Wear.

He also appeared in a cosmetic commercial for Dermablend that was titled Go Beyond The Cover.

Religion

He was raised in a family that strongly believed in Christianity.

Best Known For

• Having his whole body tattooed with the skeletal system and insects
• Modeling for French designer Thierry Mugler
• Being featured in Lady Gaga’s music video Born This Way in 2011
• Starring in the film 47 Ronin (2013) alongside actor Keanu Reeves
• Gracing the cover of several magazines such as Dazed & Confused, Schön Magazine, and Vogue Hommes
• Winning two Guinness World Record, the first being for the Most insects tattooed and the second for Most human bones tattooed

As a Singer

Rick released his first track titled Dirty Rejects on May 21, 2013, in collaboration with British singer and songwriter KAV. He had also started contributed his skills to the release of the music video Monsters Versus the World (2013). However, the project was shut down halfway through.

Later, in 2015, he worked with ex-Rob Zombie‘s heavy-metal guitarist Mike Riggs to form an EP compiled with 6 tracks That Terrible Song, Monster Inside, Monster Man, Yeah Bebe Yeah, Darkness Falls, and Bad to the Bone. However, there is not much evidence to say whether songs were released or not.

First Film

Rick made his debut theatrical film appearance as a foreman in 47 Ronin in 2013.

First TV Show

He made his first TV show appearance in Nadia G’s Bitchin’ Kitchen in 2012.

Rick Genest Favorite Things

• Movie Genre – Horror

Source – Guinness World Records

Rick Genest Facts

1. At the age of 15, he was diagnosed with a brain tumor. After that, he began to envision himself battling between life and death. Moments before his surgery, he decided to make the best of his life and chose to be disguised as a zombie.
2. Half of Rick’s brain had to be removed in order to stop the tumor from spreading.
3. He got his title as “Zombie Boy” from Bizarre Magazine.
4. Rick respected his family rituals to an extent where he waited until the age of 16 to get his first tattoo done.
5. At the age of 17, he left his home and started washing cars in order to earn money.
6. At first, he had discovered the punk culture and later, turned goth.
7. During his younger years, he was bullied by many.
8. The first tattoo that Rick got was of a “skull and crossbones” that was done on his left shoulder when he was 16 years old. The tattoo meant “no rules & no master”.
9. Rick got a majority of his tattoos done from a Montreal based tattoo artist named Frank Lewis.
10. On November 13, 2006, he was publicly featured for the first time on Body Modification Ezine‘s ModBlog.
11. He started his entertainment career in various freakshows. Later, he was discovered by Lady Gaga’s stylist Nicole Formichetti who had a picture of him on his desktop and thought it was a graphically designed wallpaper until a colleague of his told him that it was Rick Genest. After that, Rick was featured in Lady Gaga‘s music video for Born This Way in 2011.
12. It took more than 3 years and an estimate of £16,000 to have his entire body inked.
13. He died just 6 days prior to his 33rd birthday.
14. In April 2011, he won a Guinness World Record for the Most insects tattooed and a second for the Most human bones tattooed on the body. He had a staggering 176 species insects and 139 human bones tattooed.
15. In September 2012, he was chosen as the brand ambassador for Jay-Z’s music fashion label Roc-A-Wear during its European relaunch.
16. During an interview with Daily Star, he mentioned that in addition to his skeletal appearance he wanted to have his eyes injected with a toxic green color and also have his teeth sharpened.
17. He would work with Fright Nights at the Thorpe Park.
18. Just before he possibly committed suicide on August 1, 2018, Rick had uploaded a picture to his Instagram account captioning it with a heartbreaking self-penned poem called The Well. He starts his poem with a call out to Damballa (Father of the sky) and further talks about knocking at the gate of death.
19. Though evidence suggests that Rick’s death was a suicide, many of his close relatives and friends say it could have been an accident as his manager who leaned against his balcony, found the railing to be lower than his hips.
20. On August 16, 2018, legendary singer-songwriter Aretha Franklin also passed away just 15 days after Rick’s death.
21. Follow him on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.

Featured Image by Nora lives / Wikimedia / CC-BY-SA-3.0