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The biggest shock the movie business has witnessed in 2025? The comeback of horror as a main player at the UK box office.

As a genre, it has impressively exceeded past times with a 22% year-on-year increase for the British and Irish cinemas: over £83 million this year, against £68.6 million last year.

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

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

While much of the expert analysis focuses on the unique excellence of prominent auteurs, their triumphs point to something shifting between moviegoers and the style.

“Viewers often remark, ‘This is a must-see regardless of your genre preferences,’” states 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 apart from artistic merit, the consistent popularity of spooky films this year implies they are giving cinemagoers something that’s greatly desired: therapeutic relief.

“These days, movies echo the prevalent emotions of rage, anxiety, and polarization,” says a genre expert.

“The genre masterfully exploits common anxieties, magnifying them so that everyday stresses fade beside the cinematic horror,” explains a respected writer of classic monster stories.

Against a global headlines featuring conflict, immigration issues, political shifts, and climate concerns, witches, zombies and vengeful spirits strike a unique chord with viewers.

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

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

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

Analysts reference the rise of German expressionism after the WWI and the unstable environment of the early Weimar Republic, with movies such as early expressionist works and Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror.

Subsequently came the economic crisis of the 30s and classic monster movies.

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

“Thus, it mirrors widespread fears about migration.”

The boogeyman of immigration inspired the just-premiered folk horror a recent film title.

The creator elaborates: “I aimed to delve into populist rhetoric. Specifically, calls to restore a mythical past that favored a privileged few.”

“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 current era of acclaimed, socially switched-on horror commenced with a brilliant satire debuted a year after a polarizing administration.

It sparked a new wave of innovative filmmakers, including several notable names.

“Those years were remarkably vibrant,” says a creator whose movie about a murderous foetus was one of the era’s tentpole movies.

“I believe it initiated a trend toward eccentric, high-concept horror that aimed for artistic recognition.”

This creator, now penning a fresh horror script, notes: “In the last ten years, public taste has evolved to welcome bolder horror concepts.”

Simultaneously, there has been a reconsideration of the overlooked scary films.

In recent months, a new cinema opened in London, showing obscure movies such as The Greasy Strangler, The Fall of the House of Usher and the late-80s version of the expressionist icon.

The re-appreciation of this “raw and chaotic” genre is, according to the cinema founder, a direct reaction to the algorithmic content pumped out at the cinemas.

“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 explains.

“On the other hand, [these indie works] feel imperfect. They seem to burst forth from deep creativity, free from commercial constraints.”

Fright flicks continue to upset the establishment.

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

Besides the re-emergence of the mad scientist trope – with two adaptations of a classic novel on the horizon – he forecasts we will see scary movies in the near future reacting to our present fears: about AI’s dominance in the near future and “supernatural elements in political spheres”.

At the same time, a religious-themed scare film The Carpenter’s Son – which tells the story of biblical parent hardships after the messiah's arrival, and features famous performers as the holy parents – is planned for launch later this year, and will certainly create waves through the faith-based groups in the United States.</