Taylor Swift Debuts "Patient Zero" Music Video at VMAs, Transforms Song into Ghost Story

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Sep 27, 2026 6:55pm PT

Taylor Swift Premieres ‘Patient Zero’ Music Video at VMAs, Turning Her New ‘Showgirl Encore’ Single Into a Dramatic Ghost Story

By Chris Willman

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Chris Willman

Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic

ChrisWillman

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It’s a love story? No, a ghost story. Taylor Swift brought her “ Patient Zero ” music video to the MTV Video Music Awards Sunday night for its official world premiere, following up the release of the single at the beginning of the weekend with visuals that take the triangle in the song into more dramatic and even spookier realms than might have been anticipated, with Dakota Johnson and Colin Ferrell amping up the tension.

Fans had only seen a 13-second teaser for the video prior to its premiere on the CBS/MTV/Paramount+ telecast, and they now know which character the headstone was for in the cemetery Swift and Johnson visit.

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_Originally reported by [Variety Music](https://variety.com/2026/music/news/taylor-swift-vmas-patient-zero-music-video-premiere-1236876944/)._