As promised, Taylor Swift debuted her “Bad Blood” video at the Billboard Music Awards Sunday night.
The video, which kicked off the program, is a sci-fi action odyssey featuring Swift, Jessica Alba, Lena Dunham, Selena Gomez, Cindy Crawford, and many, many other famous names. Oh, and while we knew the video was going to feature Kendrick Lamar’s acting, we didn’t know the video would be for the Kendrick Lamar remix of the song, featuring bars from the man himself. That whole Swift-Lamar mutual admiration society is getting realer, and we’re #blessed for it.
Based on the promos Swift tweeted for the video, we expected it to have a Kill Bill vibe, and while ass-kicking women are all over the “Bad Blood” clip (Gigi Hadid’s character, amusingly, is named “Slay-Z”), Swift subs in a futuristic backdrop for Quentin Tarantino’s dusty western aesthetic — think more The Fifth Element than Uma Thurman and the Crazy 88s. There are explosions, clashing armies, knives being thrown, motorcycles being raced, and a whole lot more.
I’ll just say it: the video — and song — are hot. So hot, it demands its own emoji.
