Whether it be a bloody slasher or a twisting thriller, horror movies have always been considered an underground fan favorite in the movie industry. 

For over a century, horror — a genre meant to scare, shock or disgust its audience — has had relatively little recognition, critically and commercially. For instance, only six horror films have been nominated for the Best Picture award in the Oscars throughout 92 award ceremonies. However, when record-breaking films like “Obsession” and “Backrooms” released over the summer, the genre exploded with new fans eager to experience the fear-evoking and disturbing atmosphere horror creates.

The horror genre has a variety of subgenres, such as slashers, psychological horrors and supernatural films. Digital photography and yearbook teacher Gabrielle Gramegna has been a fan of horror for nearly her whole life, and finds the intricacies of the genre interesting.

“[Horror has] shifted throughout the years … there’s all sorts of different subcategories within the genre,” Gramegna said. “It taps into a very taboo subject in society, and I think it’s just really fascinating how each director decides to interpret that.”

Before the genre’s recent rise in popularity, Gramegna notes how horror films had experienced a stigma from potential fans, stemming from what she describes as a misinterpretation.

“Horror is a really misunderstood genre,” Gramegna said. “A lot of people associate it with just trying to scare you, but I think there’s a whole nuance to it that is often unnoticed or underappreciated.”

The psychological thriller “Obsession” recently shattered a decades-long record of highest grossing movie with a budget of under $1 million. The story follows a hopeless romantic who makes a wish to have the girl of his dreams, but his wish has deadly consequences. 

Experienced horror fan Darya Borhanjoo considers the movie one of her favorites, and appreciates it even more because of the film’s rapid success despite its low budget.

“There’s so many hidden meanings that you have to rewatch and [ask yourself], ‘Oh, so, what’s going on?’” Borhanjoo said. “I think it was interesting how it was a low-budget movie, and it’s gotten so big.”

Part of the movie’s appeal was the intense word-of-mouth and online promotion it had received, especially because of director Curry Barker’s large social media platform. It was also praised for a unique storyline and fresh set of actors.

Junior Jordan Troiano became a fan of horror over the summer after watching “Obsession,” similarly to 41% of 113 Branham students who responded to a Bear Witness Instagram Poll.

“The psychological horror of ‘Obsession’ was actually really cool,” Troiano said. “[After watching it,] I started watching horror movies.”

The movie “Backrooms” was also released over the summer. The film, directed by Bay Area native Kane Parsons, is set in San Jose. The movie is based on the half decade-long internet-story surrounding the concept of the endless, yellow, labyrinth-style space called “The Backrooms” — which was created by Parson in 2019 as part of his popular Youtube series also titled “Backrooms.”

“It was very hyped because it was based on a video game, and lots of people played that game, so I think it’s understandable why it got so much traction,” Gramegna said. “Whether or not I would say it’s a good movie is up for debate. I think the way that people interpret movies and enjoy movies is very subjective. People like certain things and other people don’t.”

According to Box Office Mojo, the movie grossed $197,523,513 domestically, and it earned an 86% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Despite the popularity of “Backrooms,” Borhanjoo was not a fan of the movie.

“At some point it just felt rushed,” Borhanjoo said. “And as someone that has liked The Backrooms for a long time, I feel like I kind of wanted more.”

Regardless of negative reviews, Gramegna believes that the popularity of ‘Obsession’ and ‘Backrooms’ made the genre more accessible to newer fans.

“It created an opening for the genre that didn’t exist for a very long time,” Gramegna said. “I think horror was very niche, and it attracted a certain type of crowd, but I feel like this made it more accessible to more people.”

While long-standing fans of the genre, such as sophomore Violet Luna, are excited about the fandom growth, she still misses the closed-off fanbase that had been prevalent for so long. 

“There’s something about having a quiet little fandom,” Luna said. “But it’s also nice that other people are like, ‘Oh man, y’all were totally right about this. Horror movies are super sick.’”

Borhanjoo and other older fans have noticed some differences between themselves and newer fans.

“Sometimes [newer fans] just see surface level, but when you are an experienced or seasoned watcher, you can really pick up some deep meanings, or references from other movies,” Borhanjoo said.

The originality of recent horror movies has excited older fans, like Gramegna, who looks forward to seeing more uniqueness in the genre.

“I hope [the rise in popularity] challenges the formulaic process that’s been done for so many years,” Gramegna said. “I really hope that people start expanding how they shoot horror and how they create horror productions.”

On the other hand, some fans believe that the rise in popularity will cause the creativity of horror films to become diluted.

“I think that [horror will] continue to grow, and they’ll create more similar movies because of how well ‘Obsession’ did and how well ‘Backrooms’ did,” Troiano said. “I feel like they’re going to do similar writing styles to continue that growth.”

Despite worries about the future of the novelty of horror films and the divide between older and newer fans, the movies’ buzz and enjoyment still remain.

“I’m glad that people are being allowed to like what they like more openly,” Luna said. “But there’s definitely something about having a closed fandom where it brews and distills originality into something absolutely incredible.”

Illustration by Lillian Sun/Special to Bear Witness