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The biggest surprise the movie business has experienced in 2025? The resurgence of horror as a main player at the UK film market.

As a genre, it has notably exceeded past times with a 22% year-on-year increase for the UK and Irish box office: over £83 million this year, compared with £68 million the previous year.

“In the past year, not a single horror movie hit £10 million in UK or Irish theaters. Now, five have achieved that,” notes a cinema revenue expert.

The top performers of the year – Weapons (£11.4 million), another hit film (£16.2 million), the latest Conjuring installment (£14.98 million) and 28 Years Later (£15.54m) – have all hung about in the cinemas and in the public consciousness.

While much of the industry commentary focuses on the unique excellence of prominent auteurs, their achievements suggest something shifting between audiences and the genre.

“Viewers often remark, ‘This is a must-see regardless of your genre preferences,’” explains a head of acquisition.

“Films like these play with genre and structure to create something completely different, and that speaks to an audience in a different way.”

But beyond artistic merit, the ongoing appeal of spooky films this year implies they are giving audiences something that’s greatly desired: therapeutic relief.

“Right now, there’s a lot of anger, fear and division that’s being reflected in cinema,” says a horror podcast host.

“Horror films are great at playing into people’s anxieties, while at the same time exaggerating them. So you forget about your day-to-day anxieties and focus on the monster on the screen,” remarks a prominent scholar of vampire and monster cinema.

Amid a current events featuring conflict, immigration issues, political shifts, and climate concerns, ghosts, monsters, and mythical entities strike a unique chord with audiences.

“Some research suggests vampire film popularity correlates with financial downturns,” comments an actress from a popular scary movie.

“The concept reflects how economic systems can drain vitality from individuals.”

From film's inception, societal turmoil has shaped horror.

Experts reference the surge of early cinematic styles after the the Great War and the turbulent times of the early Weimar Republic, with films such as early expressionist works and the iconic vampire tale.

Subsequently came the 1930s depression 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 historian.

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

The boogeyman of border issues influenced the recently released folk horror The Severed Sun.

The creator elaborates: “My goal was to examine populist trends. For instance, nostalgic phrases promising a return to a 'better' era that excluded many.”

“Additionally, the notion that acquaintances might unexpectedly voice extreme views, leaving others shocked.”

Perhaps, the current era of acclaimed, socially switched-on horror started with a sharp parody released a year after a polarizing administration.

It sparked a fresh generation of innovative filmmakers, including a range of talented artists.

“Those years were remarkably vibrant,” recalls a creator whose film about a deadly unborn child was one of the period's key works.

“I think it was the beginning of an era when people were opening up to doing a really bonkers horror film which had arthouse aspirations.”

This creator, now penning a fresh horror script, notes: “Over 10 years, audiences’ minds have been opening up to much more of that.”

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

Recently, a nicke l venue opened in London, showing cult classics such as a quirky horror title, The Fall of the House of Usher and the modern reinterpretation of the expressionist icon.

The renewed interest of this “gritty and loud” genre is, according to the cinema founder, a straightforward answer to the algorithmic content churned out at the theaters.

“It counters the polished content from big producers. The industry has become blander and more foreseeable. Numerous blockbusters share the same traits,” he states.

“In contrast [these alternative films] are a bit broken. It’s like they’ve erupted out of someone’s subconscious and been planted out there without corporate interference.”

Horror films continue to disrupt conventions.

“These movies uniquely blend vintage vibes with contemporary relevance,” observes an authority.

In addition to the return of the insane researcher motif – with multiple versions of a well-known story on the horizon – he anticipates we will see scary movies in 2026 and 2027 addressing our modern concerns: about artificial intelligence control in the near future and “vampires living in the Trump tower”.

In the interim, a religious-themed scare film The Carpenter’s Son – which narrates the tale of holy family challenges after Jesus’s birth, and features well-known actors as the divine couple – is scheduled to debut later this year, and will definitely create waves through the religious conservatives in the US.</