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

The most significant surprise the movie business has experienced in 2025? The return of horror as a main player at the UK box office.

As a genre, it has impressively exceeded previous years with a 22% rise compared to last year for the UK and Irish box office: over £83 million this year, compared with £68.6 million last year.

“Previously, zero horror films made £10 million in the UK or Ireland. Currently, five have surpassed that mark,” comments a box office editor.

The major successes of the year – Weapons (£11.4m), another hit film (£16.2 million), The Conjuring Last Rites (£14.98 million) and the sequel to a classic (£15.54m) – have all remained in the theaters and in the popular awareness.

While much of the industry commentary centers on the unique excellence of renowned filmmakers, 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,’” says a film distribution executive.

“Such movies experiment with style and format to produce entirely fresh content, connecting with viewers on a new level.”

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

“Right now, there’s a lot of anger, fear and division that’s being reflected in cinema,” notes a genre expert.

“The genre masterfully exploits common anxieties, magnifying them so that everyday stresses fade beside the cinematic horror,” explains a prominent scholar of horror film history.

In the context of a global headlines featuring conflict, immigration issues, political shifts, and climate concerns, supernatural beings and undead creatures resonate a bit differently with audiences.

“It’s been noted that vampire cinema thrives during periods of economic hardship,” states an star from a popular scary movie.

“This symbolizes the way modern economies can exhaust human spirit.”

Historically, public discord has always impacted scary movies.

Analysts highlight the surge of German expressionism after the WWI and the chaotic atmosphere of the post-war Germany, with films such as classic silent horror and Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror.

Subsequently came 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,” explains a commentator.

“Therefore, it embodies concerns related to foreign influx.”

The boogeyman of migration shaped the recently released supernatural tale The Severed Sun.

The filmmaker explains: “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 present time of acclaimed, socially switched-on horror started with a brilliant satire released a year after a polarizing administration.

It introduced a fresh generation of innovative filmmakers, including various prominent figures.

“Those years were remarkably vibrant,” comments a filmmaker whose project about a violent prenatal entity 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: “Over 10 years, audiences’ minds have been opening up to much more of that.”

Concurrently, there has been a reconsideration of the underrated horror works.

Earlier this year, a new cinema opened in the capital, showing underground films such as a quirky horror title, The Fall of the House of Usher and the modern reinterpretation of Dr Caligari.

The renewed interest of this “gritty and loud” genre is, according to the theater owner, a straightforward answer to the calculated releases produced at the theaters.

“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 says.

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

Scary movies continue to disrupt conventions.

“They have this strange ability to seem old fashioned and up to the minute, both at the same time,” observes an specialist.

In addition to the return of the deranged genius archetype – with two adaptations of a well-known story imminent – he predicts we will see scary movies in 2026 and 2027 responding to our present fears: about tech supremacy in the coming decades and “monstrous metaphors in power structures”.

At the same time, “Jesus horror” The Carpenter’s Son – which depicts the events of holy family challenges after the messiah's arrival, and features celebrated stars as the divine couple – is planned for launch in the coming months, and will definitely create waves through the religious conservatives in the United States.</