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The biggest jump-scare the film industry has experienced in 2025? The resurgence of horror as a dominant force at the UK film market.

As a category, it has remarkably outperformed earlier periods with a 22% rise compared to last year for the UK and Irish box office: £83.7 million in 2025, versus £68,612,395 in 2024.

“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 – a recent horror title (£11.4 million), another hit film (£16.2m), The Conjuring Last Rites (£14.98m) and 28 Years Later (£15.54 million) – have all remained in the theaters and in the popular awareness.

Even though much of the industry commentary centers on the standout quality of renowned filmmakers, their triumphs point to something changing between audiences and the genre.

“I’ve heard people say, ‘Even if you don’t like horror this is a film you need to see,’” states a head of acquisition.

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

But apart from aesthetic quality, the consistent popularity of horror movies this year implies they are giving moviegoers something that’s highly necessary: therapeutic relief.

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

“Scary movies excel at tapping into viewers' fears, amplifying them, allowing you to set aside daily worries and concentrate on the on-screen terror,” explains a prominent scholar of classic monster stories.

Against a real-world news cycle featuring war, border tensions, far-right movements, and environmental crises, supernatural beings and undead creatures resonate a bit differently with viewers.

“It’s been noted that vampire cinema thrives during periods of economic hardship,” states an star from a recent horror hit.

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

Historically, public discord has always impacted scary movies.

Experts highlight the surge of European artistic movements after the WWI and the turbulent times of the early Weimar Republic, with films such as classic silent horror and the iconic vampire tale.

Subsequently came the Great Depression era and classic monster movies.

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

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

The specter of migration shaped the just-premiered supernatural tale a recent film title.

The filmmaker 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?’”

Perhaps, the modern period of acclaimed, socially switched-on horror began with a sharp parody launched a year after a divisive leadership period.

It introduced a recent surge of horror auteurs, including several notable names.

“It was a hugely exciting time,” recalls a director whose project about a murderous foetus was one of the time's landmark films.

“In my view, it marked the start of a phase where filmmakers embraced wildly creative horror with artistic ambitions.”

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

Concurrently, there has been a revival of the genre’s less celebrated output.

In recent months, a new cinema opened in the capital, showing cult classics such as a quirky horror title, a classic adaptation and the late-80s version of the expressionist icon.

The renewed interest of this “raw and chaotic” genre is, according to the theater owner, a straightforward answer to the formulaic productions churned out at the box office.

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

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

Horror films continue to upset the establishment.

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

Besides the return of the deranged genius archetype – with several renditions of a literary masterpiece upcoming – he forecasts we will see scary movies in 2026 and 2027 responding to our current anxieties: about AI’s dominance in the years ahead and “monstrous metaphors in power structures”.

In the interim, “Jesus horror” The Carpenter’s Son – which depicts the events of Mary and Joseph’s struggles after the messiah's arrival, and stars well-known actors as the sacred figures – is set for release later this year, and will undoubtedly send a ripple through the Christian right in the United States.</