Amazon Prime Video's Killer Cakes arrived in time for the Halloween season behind an impressive cast of contestants and judges.
Teaming up with Jason Blum's Blumhouse Productions, Prime Video's Killer Cakes pits four duos against one another in a high-intensity baking competition.
The format sees these teams use their skills in cake sculpting and special effects work to develop terrifying confectionary creations inspired by Hollywood horror in the chase to come out on top. The winning pair will be awarded the Golden Knife Trophy and a grand prize of $20,000.
Killer Cakes made its debut on Amazon Prime Video on October 8.
Contestants & Judges in Killer Cakes
Matthew Lillard
Instagram: @matthewlillard
Serving as Killer Cakes' lead host/executive producer is horror movie legend and Hollywood star Matthew Lillard.
The 54-year-old legend guides the competition by giving the contestants the rules, guidelines, and assignments for what to bake while providing time updates for each round.
Lillard is best known for his work in the horror genre, starring in movies like Scream and Five Nights at Freddy's (see more on the changes to Lillard's FNAF character here). He is also remembered for his role as Shaggy Rogers in Raja Gosnell and James Gunn's live-action Scooby-Doo duology.
Danielle Harris
Instagram: @horrorgal
Filling a role as one of two judges on Killer Cakes is Hollywood scream queen legend, Danielle Harris.
Harris only enjoys a few minutes of screentime in this show as she tests the horror aspects of each cake before tasting the final result as well.
The longtime Hollywood veteran is most recognizable for her work in the Halloween franchise, boasting appearances in four separate movies. Other major credits include Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead, Roseanne, Free Willy, and The Wild Thornberrys.
Nikk Alcaraz
Instagram: @practicalpeculiarities
Nikk Alcaraz is a world-famous YouTuber and social media personality known for his work with food and themes of magic and horror, and he joins Killer Cakes as the second judge.
He runs a business called Practical Peculiarities, a platform where food and art are melded together as he develops gorgeous food constructs. He is also a master of DIY (do-it-yourself) projects, which have gained recognition from various press outlets and celebrities in the food world.
Alcaraz boasts over 1 million followers on social media and is also the author of Peculiar Baking: A Practical Guide to Strange Confections.
Amanda Yother
Amanda Yother comes to Killer Cakes by way of Couer d'Alene, Idaho, where she works as a head cake decorator. She is partnered up with Dziedra "Z" Brusberg
Admittedly, Yother described herself as something of a chicken in real life, although she has a love and passion for horror movies and food. She enjoys making horror-themed cakes, developing fake human body parts and monsters, and making things bleed.
Dill Barlow
Dill Barlow works as a cake artist in Houston, Texas. His partner in the competition is Deadra Compton.
Finding his love for horror and gore from his family, he combines his passion for the scary with his skills in the kitchen by developing unique pastries. Barlow finds joy in making the gore and creepy aspects of his work as realistic-looking as possible.
Dziedra "Z" Brusberg
Dziedra "Z" Brusberg comes to this cake-based series from Mukilteo, Washington, where she holds down a job as a business manager while raising her kids.
She detailed meeting partner Amanda Yother at a birthday party and connecting. While she has not worked specifically on horror cakes before, she wants to prove to her partner that she is the right choice for the job.
Deadra "Dee" Compean
Deadra "Dee" Compean calls Beaumont, Texas her home and works as an overall artist with a wide range of skills. She uses a variety of materials for her work, including shoes, nails, and food.
Compean recalled meeting her partner, Dill Barlow, seven years ago at a bakery, although it took some time for them to warm up to one another. The artist detailed her passion for bringing gore, guts, and peoples' worst nightmares into reality through her cooking.
Eszter Summerlin
Instagram: @esztersummerlin
After originally coming to the United States from Budapest, Hungary, Eszter Summerlin now resides in Gulf Breeze, Florida, and works as a cake artist. She works and lives near the beach, as does her partner, Shanelle Long.
Summerlin's specialty is baking, which she started as a hobby when her kids were growing up. She later met Shanelle while working in their shop together, describing herself as the more reserved and shy person who works to keep the lights on.
Jesse Lesser
Instagram: @jesselesser
Jesse Lesser makes a living as a cake decorator in Dallas, Texas, and she is partnered up with Mark Lie.
She originally got into baking with her mother during her younger years. While she did not think she could make a career out of it at first, she went to pastry school on a whim and realized the skills she had in the kitchen.
Mark Lie
Mark Lie is partnered with Jesse Lesser, and he also works as a cake artist in Chicago, Illinois.
He initially started his professional journey as a graphic designer before taking a cake decorating class. Lie found that he loved it as a creative outlet where he could use his hands.
Lie and Lesser became partners after being friends on Facebook for years, eventually traveling around working in cake shows together. Lie is also a massive horror fan and loves gory cakes, noting how this competition is made just for him.
Shanelle Long
Instagram: @sugarshockcakeco
Shanelle Long is a cake artist from Pensacola, Florida, who is partnered with Eszter Summerlin. While she used to be only a stay-at-home mom, she took a second job in the food industry to support herself and her family.
Long looked back to faking a portfolio highlighting her baking skills and taking it to a local bakery, which got her the job before she found out how good she was at it. Growing up in the '80s, she was obsessed with horror and slasher movies, and she later got into sculpting and using her horror experience as inspiration for her work.
Both episodes of Killer Cakes are now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
