With thrilling scenes and graphic images, horror movies draw viewers in for an adrenaline rush. As of 2025, horror movies make up 17 percent of annual box office ticket sales in North America. In 2014, horror movies made up 2.69 percent, and in 2021, that number had risen to 12.75 percent. The film genre’s rapid growth raises the question of what draws people to experience fear, according to The New York Times.
The appeal of horror movies may lie in the human mind itself and the strange satisfaction people get by self-inflicting fear. Mrs. Jillian Bozzi, Upper School History teacher, discussed the various reasons behind why people enjoy horror movies.
“I think it has a lot to do with people seeing things on a screen that they can channel their real-life struggles into,” Mrs. Bozzi said. “Seeing people in stressful or scary situations can trigger a fight-or-flight response in some people, making them feel like they are at the front of the scene.”
Mr. Adam Lowenstein, a professor at the University of Pittsburgh, researched how horror movies are able to engage viewers through portraying shocking historical events, according to The New York Times. The genre’s design is meant to unsettle viewers through film. Two examples of movies that employ this disturbing effect are The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Psycho, both of which are based on crimes based on serial killer Mr. Ed Gein and the crimes he committed in Wisconsin in the mid-1950s, according to The New York Times. Mr. Lowenstein commented on how horror films are able to channel trauma to gain viewer interest.
“It’s the horror film that’s actually able to engage traumatic history and to confront viewers with it, and it’s largely because the horror film is already equipped with tools to shock, unsettle, and disturb us,” Mr. Lowenstein said, according to The New York Times. “The Scream-type film and its imitators, with their insular worlds of teenagers obsessed with horror films and ruthless journalists obsessed with teenagers, will be seen to have a lot to do with events like Columbine.”
Mr. Lowenstein also noted that horror movies can have a particularly negative impact on teenagers. As adolescents, they may attempt to recreate certain aspects of scenes in movies without understanding the context. As a result, unnecessary and dangerous violence, crimes, or abuses depicted on screen can make their way into reality. Mr. Tom Gunning, a film historian at the University of Chicago, argued that graphic images can impact critical thinking skills, particularly for developing minds. Additionally, Mr. Eric Foner, a professor at Columbia University, warned people to be skeptical of filmmakers who exaggerate their social impact. Historical movies of the horror genre can cause a more dramatic psychological effect on viewers than ordinary historical dramas, according to The New York Times.
Dr. Margee Kerr, a sociologist at the University of Pittsburgh, asserts that people who visit haunted houses and interact with scare actors often feel less stressed and tired, more competent, and in a better mood afterward, according to wsj.com. Millions of people worldwide enjoy recreational fear, whether through horror movies, television shows, podcasts, or books.
Dr. Coltan Scrivner, a scientist at the Recreational Fear Lab at Aarhus University in Denmark, conducted a study in 2022 about people who enjoy horror and scary experiences. His research found that horror movies draw people in for different reasons. Some people like the excitement and energy the movies provide, while others use them to challenge themselves or work through emotions. The study showed that people engage in activities that cause fear not only for the excitement and adrenaline, but also because it relates to their interests and helps them grow, according to wsj.com. Dr. Cynthia Hoffner, a researcher at Georgia State University, described how horror movies can make people realize that certain situations are not as scary as they thought through storytelling, according to The New York Times.
“Watching these kinds of films can be a way of mastering terrifying situations and demonstrating that you’re not afraid,” Dr. Hoffner said, according to The New York Times. “You can kind of reflect on ‘wow, I was really more scared than I thought I would be,’ or ‘wow, I really reacted in a way that I didn’t think I would react.'”
Featured Image by Tori Kniffen ’28
