The horror film genre has been revitalized in the last few years, and some of the highest-quality and scariest movies of all time have been released in the 2020s, specifically. Where the previous decades were marked by slasher franchises and the found footage genre kicked off by The Blair Witch Project, the horror genre has moved away from many of the traditional horror subgenres in favor of exploring new ground. High-profile actors and actresses have embraced horror, and advances in CGI and experimental camera techniques have unlocked new nightmares across many horror subgenres.
Gone are the days of sixth and seventh sequels to well-worn slasher villain franchises; they’ve been replaced by unique, high-concept stories that now prioritize quality and originality over the familiar tropes. However, it’s difficult to say which subgenre has taken over as the most popular. All the most historically popular subgenres are still represented with new entries each year, but one subgenre has risen to the forefront when it comes to anticipation, box office impact, and rewatchability.
Psychological Thriller Is Currently The Most Popular Horror Subgenre
High-Concept Psychological Horror Is Currently The Biggest Draw
Advances in camera work and truly brilliant original stories have made the psychological thriller the premier horror subgenre of the 2020s. Psychological thrillers are nothing new, but they’ve truly been revolutionized in the 2020s with the emergence of high-concept psychological horror. These movies have remarkably simple premises, but the devil is in the details. Revolutionary camera work and manipulation of elements like time, light, and perspective have helped create totally original character and audience viewpoints. The horror comes not from scary monsters or killers, but from the perversion of the human experience.
According to a study from
Statista
, as of October 2022, psychological horror was listed as the highest-ranked “favorite horror subgenre” among adults in the United States, followed by comedy horror and paranormal horror.
Good psychological thrillers are often heavily metaphorical, and their stories act as exaggerated stand-ins for everyday human experiences. For example, 2022’s smash hit Talk to Me may involve the dead haunting and possessing teenagers trying to play a party game, but it’s a clear and obvious metaphor for how we process grief. Rose Glass’ Love Lies Bleeding is a violent and ultimately fantastical story about addiction, and how hard it is to break free whether you’re addicted to actual drugs or something purer like love.
Psychological thrillers are almost always more than they appear, which speaks to how the modern horror audience has evolved to expect more from the genre. One of the benefits of this shift in demand is the opportunity for a new and diverse generation of filmmakers to create engrossing horror movies for a relatively low budget. With a lower budget, there is far less risk involved for any production company, which has allowed entities like A24, Neon, and IFC Films to produce and promote movie ideas that might never be given the green light at a big studio.
Why Slasher Movies Are Still Popular
Creators Are Exploring New Territory In The Subgenre
To be clear, the traditional horror subgenres have not disappeared. Slasher movies in particular are seeing a revitalization thanks to creators who are willing to step outside the normal conventions of what a slasher movie has been. The best example of this is undoubtedly 2024’s In a Violent Nature, the innovative Canadian slasher that followed the perspective of the resurrected mute killer, Johnny, for most of the movie’s runtime. Other off-beat slashers like Thanksgiving and Bodies Bodies Bodies utilize some traditional tropes but enhance them with an engaging mystery.
Top 10 Highest-Grossing Slasher Films of All Time | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Movie | Release Year | Budget | Box Office Gross |
Halloween | 2018 | $10 million | $259.9 million |
Scream | 1996 | $15 million | $173 million |
Scream 2 | 1997 | $24 million | $172 million |
Scream VI | 2023 | $40 million | $161.8 million |
Scream 3 | 2003 | $35 million | $169 million |
I Know What You Did Last Summer | 1997 | $17 million | $125.3 million |
A Nightmare on Elm Street | 2010 | $35 million | $117.7 million |
Freddy vs. Jason | 2003 | $30 million | $116.6 million |
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre | 2003 | $9.5 million | $107.4 million |
Friday the 13th | 2009 | $19 million | $92.7 million |
Slasher franchises certainly aren’t dead, however. The Scream franchise is better than ever both critically and at the box office, and the reboot trilogy of the Halloween franchise produced some of the top horror box office numbers in the 2020s. Ti West’s X trilogy even brought a new slasher franchise to life, and all three movies were critical darlings. Slasher franchises will always remain a staple of the horror genre partly due to nostalgia for the franchises of yesteryear, but a newfound willingness to push the boundaries of the genre is the other key to their perpetual popularity.
How Monster Movies Are Making A Comeback In Horror
Reimagined Traditional Tropes Are Revitalizing The Subgenre
The near future could see control of the horror genre pass back into the claws of monsters. 2024 and 2025 will see the return of (potentially) high-quality movies involving some of Hollywood’s favorite creepy creatures; Leigh Whannell’s Wolf Man adaptation is on the way in 2025, as is Guillermo del Toro’s take on Frankenstein starring Jacob Elordi (Euphoria).Vampires in particular could take center stage, as the coming months will see three high-profile vampire movies in a new Salem’s Lot adaptation, Robert Eggers’ much-anticipated Nosferatu, and Ryan Coogler’s first foray into horror with Sinners, starring Michael B. Jordan.
Related
10 Best Werewolf Movies Of All Time
While werewolves haven’t received as much cinematic love as vampires, zombies, or ghosts, there are plenty of classics to watch when the moon is full.
Horror is currently in the midst of a new golden age, with a prioritization on quality story-telling and innovative moviemaking taking the genre to new heights. While all horror subgenres will continue on in some capacity, the spotlight is currently on psychological horror given the recent string of hit movies that have been released. The top horror subgenre of the future is far less certain, but what is certain is that moviegoers will continue to demand higher quality, both in strength of narrative and strength of craft.
Source: Statista
