IT and the Horror Genre in 2017

Fans and critics alike are raving over the most recent adaptation of the classic Stephen King horror thriller, IT. Offering more than just a glimpse at a terrifying threat that personifies the very essence of evil, Andy Muschietti’s reimagining of the 1990 TV miniseries focuses on the bond and growth of the members of the “Loser’s Club”, a group of children in Derry, Maine who are each terrorized by the antagonizing Pennywise in different ways. By focusing on the children’s tenacity to overcome their individual fears rather than focusing on the spine-chilling fear itself, as many films in the genre do, IT becomes more than just a horror film. And to filmgoers’ great benefit, that is a trend that has been going upwards in recent years.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, IT drew in a scary good $51 million on it’s opening day alone. That means that in a single day, it broke records for the biggest opening in the month September (beating Hotel Transylvania 2), biggest Friday ever for an R-rated film (beating Deadpool), and biggest opening ever for a horror film (beating Paranormal Activity 3, if you include the box office numbers from Thursday early releases). These numbers are huge for box offices as theater attendances had fallen to a 25-year low with seven consecutive below-average weekends.

IT’s box office draw is also significant because it is already the third film in the horror genre to hit the $50 million domestic mark in 2017, matching Annabelle: Creation ($93.5 million so far) and Get Out ($175.5 million), although there are five movies depending on your definition of the genre, as sci-fi horrors Alien: Covenant ($74.3 million) and Life ($100.5 million) also passed the mark. How rare is this? Well, in the previous four years combined, there were only six total films to gross at least $50 million: two in 2016 (Don’t Breathe and The Conjuring 2), zero in 2015, two in 2014 (Saw 10^th Anniversary–so one if we’re only counting new films– and Annabelle), and two in 2013 (The Conjuring and Evil Dead [2013]). But despite five box office successes for the genre already in 2017, there may be more still yet to come. Darren Aronofsky’s highly anticipated psychological horror mother! hits theaters this month along with Jeepers Creepers 3, and in October horror fans will be treated to Cult of Chucky, Leather Face, Snowman, and Jigsaw. The latter four may have difficulties competing with each other at the box office but nevertheless, it is likely that we have not seen the final box office horror hit this year, making 2017 one of the best years in history for the genre.

Of course, money doesn’t determine whether or not a film is actually good– a variety of factors go into that. What makes 2017 even more unique is that the top box office drawers in horror have also gotten favorable ratings as well, something not all too common in the history of the genre. IT currently stands at 88% on Rotten Tomatoes (71 on Metacritic), making it “certified fresh”. Annabelle: Creation has mixed but generally favorable reviews at 68% (62 on Metacritic) and Get Out impressively remains the most highly rated theatrical wide-release of the year at 99% (84 on Metacritic). So what can we take away from all this? Horror fans can rest at ease– or maybe, not rest at all– because horror films are getting better, seeing more success, and perhaps, inducing just a bit more fear into the world.