James Anthony Janisse (born May 6, 1989), is an American YouTuber, writer, editor, executive producer, and actor. He is best known as the founder and host of the YouTube channel Dead Meat, which features the popular series The Kill Count, horror podcasts, and interviews.
Janisse has appeared in several film and television productions, including In Search of Darkness (2019), Scream (2022), Friendsgiving (2023), Little Bites (2024), and Hysteria! (2024). He also appeared in the second season of the web series The Look-See (2018) and directed Fresh Meat (2026).
Early life James Anthony Janisse was born on May 6, 1989, in Detroit, Michigan. He developed a passion for horror films at a young age, citing Scream franchise as his introduction to the genre. As a child, he learned HTML to create a website dedicated to counting kills in horror movies. Janisse earned a degree in filmmaking from the University of Michigan.
Career 2009–2016: Early career Before Janisse became a content creator on YouTube, he worked as an actor and appeared in 2009 short film Everyone's a V.I.P. to Someone in a small role. Janisse spent over five years co-running comedy YouTube channels with his now-wife Chelsea Rebecca, starting with Comediocracy and later Practical Folks in 2010. While studying at the University of Michigan, he began making comedy videos together with Rebecca.
In 2011, they founded Comediocracy, which was later removed by YouTube, and then launched Practical Folks with James Graessle and Joel Arnold. Handling most of the editing for Practical Folks limited his creative freedom, so he left the channel and spent late 2016 to early 2017 developing a new horror-focused project, Dead Meat.
2017–present: Dead Meat
Janisse launched Dead Meat in 2017 with its flagship show The Kill Count, where he breaks down horror movies, highlights memorable deaths, shares trivia, and notes production details. The channel grew fast, and by 2022 it had 5.94 million subscribers and more than 2 billion views. He is president and executive producer of Dead Meat, which he co-owns with Rebecca, who launched the Dead Meat Podcast in 2018.
In 2018, Janisse appeared in the second season of Crypt TV's The Look-See, where he played the role of Raymond. In 2022, streaming service Shudder sponsored the Dead Meat Horror Awards. Winners, chosen by him and his wife, were presented by their friends from the horror community. He has also appeared in acting roles, such as playing Toby, a store clerk in the Thanksgiving horror-comedy Fiendsgiving alongside Samm Levine. He has expressed interest in professional wrestling and has begun training for a potential future match. He has explained that his on-camera persona in The Kill Count is partly a character, while he is more candid on the podcast. His favorite films include John Carpenter's The Thing and Scream (1996).
Personal life
Janisse lives in Los Angeles, California, with his wife Chelsea Rebecca. The couple are both horror enthusiasts, and actress Heather Langenkamp officiated their wedding.
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes Ref. 2009 Everyone's a V.I.P. to Someone Ben Small role 2019 Hashtag Beach guy Short filmIn Search of DarknessHimself2022ScreamCriticCameo 2023 Fiendsgiving Toby 2024Little BitesDougGrindJustin2025The Red MaskHimselfCameo Frankenbabes from Beyond the Grave! Newscaster Executive producer2026 Zealous Townsfolk Man
Television Year Title Role Notes Ref. 2018 The Look-See Raymond Season 2 2024Hysteria!Male TownspersonCameo; Season 1, Episode 32025The Boulet Brothers' Dragula: TitansHimselfSeason 2
Music videos Year Title Artist Role Ref. 2014 "Fiona Coyne" Skylar Spence Main character 2023 "Welcome to Horrorwood" Ice Nine Kills Officer Dunbar 2025 "Does She Know?" T-Pain Executive producer
Other appearances +YearTitleNotesRef.2020Joe Bob's Haunted Drive-InSpecial guest
References
External links