{'It’s like they’ve erupted out of someone’s subconscious': the way horror has taken over contemporary film venues.

The largest surprise the film industry has witnessed in 2025? The comeback of horror as a main player at the British cinemas.

As a category, it has remarkably surpassed past times with a annual growth of 22% for the UK and Irish box office: over £83 million this year, against £68,612,395 in 2024.

“In the past year, not a single horror movie hit £10 million in UK or Irish theaters. Now, five have achieved that,” says a cinema revenue expert.

The top performers of the year – Weapons (£11.4 million), another hit film (£16.2m), the latest Conjuring installment (£14.98 million) and 28 Years Later (£15.54m) – have all hung about in the cinemas and in the public consciousness.

Even though much of the industry commentary focuses on the singular brilliance of prominent auteurs, their successes indicate something shifting between viewers and the genre.

“Many have expressed, ‘You should watch this even if horror isn’t your thing,’” explains a head of acquisition.

“These productions twist traditional elements to craft unique experiences, resonating deeply with modern audiences.”

But apart from creative value, the consistent popularity of spooky films this year indicates they are giving audiences something that’s greatly desired: catharsis.

“Currently, cinema mirrors the widespread anger, fear, and societal splits,” says a film commentator.

“Horror films are great at playing into people’s anxieties, while at the same time exaggerating them. So you forget about your day-to-day anxieties and focus on the monster on the screen,” says a respected writer of classic monster stories.

Amid a real-world news cycle featuring conflict, immigration issues, political shifts, and climate concerns, supernatural beings and undead creatures connect in new ways with viewers.

“Some research suggests vampire film popularity correlates with financial downturns,” says an star from a popular scary movie.

“It’s the idea that capitalism sucks the life out of people.”

Since the early days of cinema, social unrest has influenced the genre.

Experts point to the rise of early cinematic styles after the WWI and the turbulent times of the post-war Germany, with features such as classic silent horror and a pioneering fright film.

Subsequently came the Great Depression era and classic monster movies.

“Take Dracula: it depicts an Eastern European figure invading Britain, spreading a metaphorical infection that endangers local protagonists,” notes a academic.

“So it reflects a lot of anxieties around immigration.”

The specter of immigration influenced the recently released folk horror The Severed Sun.

The filmmaker elaborates: “I wanted to explore ideas around the rise of populism. Firstly, slogans like ‘Let’s Make Britain Great Again’, that harken back to some fantasy time when things were ‘better’, but only if you were a rich white man.”

“Secondly, the idea that you could be with someone you know and then suddenly they blurt out something round the dinner table or in a Facebook post and you’re like, ‘Where did that come from?’”

Arguably, the current era of celebrated, politically engaged fright cinema started with a brilliant satire released a year after a contentious political era.

It ushered in a fresh generation of innovative filmmakers, including a range of talented artists.

“It was a hugely exciting time,” comments a filmmaker whose film about a deadly unborn child was one of the era’s tentpole movies.

“I believe it initiated a trend toward eccentric, high-concept horror that aimed for artistic recognition.”

The director, currently developing another scary story, continues: “During the past decade, viewers have become more receptive to such innovative approaches.”

Concurrently, there has been a reappraisal of the overlooked scary films.

Earlier this year, a nicke l venue opened in a major city, showing obscure movies such as The Greasy Strangler, a classic adaptation and the modern reinterpretation of the expressionist icon.

The fresh acclaim of this “rough and rowdy” genre is, according to the venue creator, a clear response to the algorithmic content pumped out at the box office.

“It counters the polished content from big producers. The industry has become blander and more foreseeable. Numerous blockbusters share the same traits,” he states.

“Conversely, [such movies] appear raw. As if they emerged straight from the artist's mind, untouched by studio control.”

Horror films continue to challenge the norm.

“Horror possesses a dual nature, feeling both classic and current simultaneously,” notes an authority.

Alongside the revival of the mad scientist trope – with several renditions of a classic novel on the horizon – he forecasts we will see fright features in 2026 and 2027 responding to our modern concerns: about AI’s dominance in the coming decades and “monstrous metaphors in power structures”.

In the interim, a religious-themed scare film The Carpenter’s Son – which tells the story of biblical parent hardships after the nativity, and stars well-known actors as the divine couple – is scheduled to debut later this year, and will definitely cause a stir through the Christian right in the United States.</