This image released by Warner Bros Pictures shows Michael B. Jordan, foreground from left, Michael B. Jordan and Omar Benson Miller in a scene from "Sinners." (Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)
This image released by Warner Bros Pictures shows Michael B. Jordan, foreground from left, Michael B. Jordan and Omar Benson Miller in a scene from "Sinners." (Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)
Over the weekend, NBC News aired a segment showing that horror films are at a high in popularity, and have claimed a record-breaking 15.54% of all box office sales so far in 2025. Like an ominous orchestra swell in a tense scene, the report indicated this could be a sign of bad news for the economy overall.Â
The popularity of horror movies also spiked in 2008 through parts of 2009 and in the mid-1970s, both severely turbulent economic times for the U.S., with a fair amount of social turmoil, as well.Â
Interestingly enough, in the data provided by NBC, horror movie ticket sales were at their lowest 10 years ago, making up a mere 3.79% of box office receipts. In the past five years, they've been above 10% for each year except for 2020 and 2022. Between 2012 and this year, the first time horror movie ticket sales jumped above 10% of the box office take was 2017.Â
So, do high numbers at the box office for horror flicks mean an impending economic crisis? Not necessarily. This is a correlation, not a cause-and-effect relationship.Â
A similar example that used to be commonly cited was that when ice cream consumption went up, so did crime. Obviously, it didn't mean criminals were going for ice cream after snatching a purse or that eating ice cream made someone want to pull a bank heist. The statistics were connected by the variable of rising heat. When it gets warmer, people eat more ice cream. It just so happens that more crime is committed during warmer weather as well.Â
So, people flocking to horror movies doesn't cause an economic collapse and an economic collapse (or the threat of one) does not necessarily drive up an interest in scary movies.
What, then, is the common variable? Perhaps it's social turmoil. It might be stress. Maybe it's political uncertainty and strife. It's probably a combination of many factors, all of which might feel like they're out of an individual's control.
In a theater, one can gawk at the macabre and fear of the unknown while knowing it's just a movie. A mindless monster stalking a person who took a wrong turn in the woods can be terrifying on screen, but not in the same way as mounting utility and medical bills, or prices on essential goods spiking because of tariffs.Â
