Murderous toys, vampires and zombies are killing it in movie theaters, at a time when saviors, sequels and reboots have grown stale among audiences – entertainment industry veterans say.

Hollywood

Horror films are experiencing a surge in popularity at cinemas, with industry data revealing that 17% of tickets sold in North America this year have been for scary movies, up from 11% the previous year and just 4% a decade ago. Industry professionals attribute this trend to audiences seeking new experiences beyond sequels and reboots, as well as the unique communal thrill that horror movies provide in a theater setting.

Low production costs and creative freedom have attracted prominent directors to the genre, resulting in box office successes such as 'Sinners' and upcoming releases from established franchises. The rise in horror's popularity has also coincided with a broader shift in moviegoing habits following the pandemic, as theaters look to horror to help drive audiences back to the big screen.

Horror hooks movie-goers, injecting cinemas with fresh energy

That's not actually coming for our family, because that would be crazy. Good luck. Move over, Superman. There's a new hero at the box office. Horror movies. Murderous toys, vampires, and zombies are killing it in movie theaters. At a time when saviors, sequels, and reboots have grown stale among audiences, entertainment industry veterans say. Jason Blum is a producer. What you can't do at home is sit in a dark room with 100 other people, not on your phone, and jump. And I think horror movies have really become an experience that can only be really felt outside of the home in a movie theater. This year, 17% of tickets bought in North America have been for scary movies. That figure was 11% in 2024 and 4% a decade ago, Comscore data compiled exclusively for Reuters shows. Cinema owners have plenty of reasons to celebrate with box office performances like Sinners and Final Destination Bloodlines. And there are new installments of popular horror franchises coming soon, like The Conjuring Last Rites. One of the knocks on Hollywood and movies that we rely upon is they just lack creativity. People are just trying the same old formulas that maybe worked five years ago, but not necessarily working now. And I feel like, you know, today it's these horror directors that are really some of the most creative minds out there. And they're taking chances that others aren't. Brent Gulley owns a cinema in Sandy Springs, Georgia. Horror customers, at least ours, tend to go to the movies more often than others. And I think it's because they're not as dependent on word of mouth or they don't need to know it's an Academy Award winning potential hit before they commit to, you know, dropping money to go see it. They just are excited that there's a new creative horror movie out there and they want to come see it. Producers, studio execs and theater owners say horror has historically provided a safe outlet for people to cope with contemporary anxieties. And let's face it, there's no lack of material to choose from. The aftershocks of a global pandemic, paranoia over A.I. and resurgent racism. I take almost no pleasure in this. The productions are often low budget and allow greater risk taking than higher cost, higher stakes films. That creative freedom has attracted big name directors like Guillermo del Toro and Danny Boyle. And audiences are responding. Ryan Coogler's Sinners is this year's third highest grossing movie in the U.S. and Canada, Comscore says. Twins? Now we cousins. Horror has been a cinematic staple from its earliest days, when Thomas Edison filmed Frankenstein on his motion picture camera in 1910. Later, when Edison improved the early projector, a new art that was destined to encircle the world was born. But it didn't always get Hollywood's respect. Perceptions began to change with the critical and commercial success of films like Psycho, The Exorcist and The Shining. The genre broke the $1 billion box office barrier in the U.S. and Canada for the first time in 2017. The film adaptation of Stephen King's novel It and Jordan Peele's Get Out were big contributors. Fast forward to 2024 and the number of U.S. horror films that went into production was up 21 percent from the year before, researcher Ampere Analysis found. And scary movies have been scooping up statues at the biggest award ceremonies recently. Here's a clue. It's Megan. Movie theaters are still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, which sped up a shift towards watching at home over going out to the movies. But many industry professionals say horror is a genre that manages to get people off their couch and into a theater where the environment heightens the experience. Now, I think more than ever, to get people here in theaters, people want a good story. They love, you know, things like Barbie where they know what's going to happen. They just want to be entertained. But for the most part, people want really good stories that engage them. And it feels like that's the genre where we're getting the most of that from.

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