{'It’s like they’ve erupted out of someone’s subconscious': how horror came to possess modern cinemas.

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

As a category, it has impressively outperformed past times with a 22% year-on-year increase for the UK and Ireland film earnings: over £83 million this year, compared with £68.6 million last year.

“Last year, no horror film reached £10m at the UK or Irish box office. This year, five films have,” notes a cinema revenue expert.

The big hits of the year – Weapons (£11.4 million), another hit film (£16.2m), the latest Conjuring installment (£14.98m) and the sequel to a classic (£15.54 million) – have all stayed in the cinemas and in the popular awareness.

Although much of the expert analysis centers on the singular brilliance of certain directors, their achievements indicate something evolving between viewers and the genre.

“I’ve heard people say, ‘Even if you don’t like horror this is a film you need to see,’” explains a content buying lead.

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

But beyond artistic merit, the consistent popularity of frightening features this year suggests they are giving audiences something that’s highly necessary: catharsis.

“These days, movies echo the prevalent emotions of rage, anxiety, and polarization,” says a horror podcast host.

“Scary movies excel at tapping into viewers' fears, amplifying them, allowing you to set aside daily worries and concentrate on the on-screen terror,” explains a respected writer of horror film history.

Amid a global headlines featuring war, border tensions, far-right movements, and environmental crises, witches, zombies and vengeful spirits resonate a bit differently with viewers.

“Some research suggests vampire film popularity correlates with financial downturns,” states an performer 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.

Scholars reference the surge of German expressionism after the the Great War and the unstable environment of the post-war Germany, with features such as The Cabinet of Dr Caligari and the iconic vampire tale.

This was followed by the economic crisis of the 30s and Universal Studios’ Frankenstein and The Wolfman.

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

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

The boogeyman of migration influenced the newly launched supernatural tale a recent film title.

The creator 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 modern period of celebrated, politically engaged fright cinema started with a brilliant satire debuted a year after a divisive leadership period.

It sparked a new wave of horror auteurs, including several notable names.

“It was a hugely exciting time,” recalls a filmmaker whose project about a deadly unborn child was one of the period's key works.

“In my view, it marked the start of a phase where filmmakers embraced wildly creative horror with artistic ambitions.”

The director, currently developing another scary story, continues: “In the last ten years, public taste has evolved to welcome bolder horror concepts.”

Simultaneously, there has been a revival of the underrated horror works.

Earlier this year, a independent theater opened in the capital, showing underground films such as The Greasy Strangler, The Fall of the House of Usher and the 1989 remake of the expressionist icon.

The re-appreciation of this “gritty and loud” genre is, according to the cinema founder, a direct reaction to the formulaic productions pumped out at the box office.

“It’s a reaction to the sanitised product that’s coming out of Hollywood. You have a film scene that’s more tepid and more predictable. A lot of the mainstream films are very similar,” he states.

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

Scary movies continue to upset the establishment.

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

Besides the return of the mad scientist trope – with two adaptations of a classic novel on the horizon – he anticipates we will see scary movies in 2026 and 2027 addressing our modern concerns: about tech supremacy in the coming decades and “supernatural elements in political spheres”.

Meanwhile, a biblical fright story a forthcoming title – which tells the story of Mary and Joseph’s struggles after the messiah's arrival, and features celebrated stars as the divine couple – is planned for launch soon, and will certainly cause a stir through the Christian right in the US.</