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The most significant surprise the film industry has witnessed in 2025? The return of horror as a main player at the UK film market.

As a genre, it has notably surpassed previous years with a 22% year-on-year increase for the UK and Ireland film earnings: over £83 million this year, against £68 million the previous year.

“Last year, no horror film reached £10m at the UK or Irish box office. This year, five films have,” comments a film industry analyst.

The major successes of the year – a recent horror title (£11.4 million), Sinners (£16.2m), 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.

Although much of the expert analysis centers on the standout quality of certain directors, their successes point to something shifting between moviegoers and the genre.

“Viewers often remark, ‘This is a must-see regardless of your genre preferences,’” states a content buying lead.

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

But apart from creative value, the ongoing appeal of frightening features this year implies they are giving moviegoers something that’s much needed: catharsis.

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

“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,” explains a respected writer of classic monster stories.

In the context of a real-world news cycle featuring geopolitical strife, enforcement actions, extremist rises, and ecological disasters, 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.

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

Since the early days of cinema, social unrest has influenced the genre.

Experts point to the surge of German expressionism after the WWI and the turbulent times of the post-war Germany, with films such as The Cabinet of Dr Caligari and a pioneering fright film.

This was followed by the 1930s depression and classic monster movies.

“Consider the Dracula narrative: an outsider from the east brings a corrupting influence that permeates society and challenges its heroes,” says a academic.

“Thus, it mirrors widespread fears about migration.”

The phantom of migration influenced the recently released rural fright The Severed Sun.

The creator explains: “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 modern period of acclaimed, socially switched-on horror started with a brilliant satire debuted a year after a polarizing administration.

It sparked a recent surge of horror auteurs, including various prominent figures.

“It was a hugely exciting time,” says a director whose movie about a deadly unborn child was one of the time's landmark films.

“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.”

The same filmmaker, who is writing a new horror original, adds: “During the past decade, viewers have become more receptive to such innovative approaches.”

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

Earlier this year, a new cinema opened in London, showing obscure movies such as a quirky horror title, The Fall of the House of Usher and the 1989 remake of Dr Caligari.

The renewed interest of this “raw and chaotic” genre is, according to the venue creator, a straightforward answer to the formulaic productions pumped out at the cinemas.

“This responds to the sterile output from major studios. Today's cinema is safer and more repetitive. Many popular movies feel identical,” he states.

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

Scary movies continue to upset the establishment.

“These movies uniquely blend vintage vibes with contemporary relevance,” notes an expert.

Alongside the return of the deranged genius archetype – with several renditions of a classic novel upcoming – he anticipates we will see horror films 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 biblical fright story a forthcoming title – which narrates the tale of holy family challenges after the nativity, and stars well-known actors as the divine couple – is scheduled to debut later this year, and will undoubtedly cause a stir through the Christian right in the America.</