For 97 years, the Oscars have given out the award for Best Picture. The winning film is immediately immortalized in film history as one of the most important of its era.
Only once has the Academy given it to a horror movie.
During the 64th Oscars in 1992, “Silence of the Lambs” became the first and, as of now, only horror movie to win film’s most coveted award. Depending on your definition of horror movie, only six to eight horror movies have ever even been nominated.
This year, that number will almost certainly increase.
According to multiple reports, Warner Bros. is planning to launch Oscar campaigns for “Sinners” and “Weapons,” two of the most critically acclaimed movies of the year, which both happen to land firmly in the horror genre. With the full weight of one of the largest media corporations in the world behind them, the films will almost certainly get nominations, if not for Best Picture, then for many others.
This is not only good news for the movies represented, but it’s a step in the right direction for the genre’s perception.
For decades, horror has been seen as a lesser form of the art, reserved for simplistic stories and inferior production values. But this has never actually been true. Films like “Halloween” and “The Shining” have become iconic not just in horror but in cinema, and their influence can be traced throughout film history.
“Alien” pioneered the art of special effects. “The Exorcist” mainstreamed the idea of supernatural fear into film. There is maybe no movie more influential to modern thrillers than “Psycho.” All of these movies have been lauded retrospectively, but horror is rarely appreciated in its time.
Movies like “Sinners” and “Weapons” not only make the case for more accolades for horror films, but they also encourage studios to take more risks.
Neither of these films slotted into a previously established franchise. They were original stories made by brilliant creatives. There was no guarantee of box office or critical success, and yet both were achieved.
The genre is consistently the most profitable. Budgets are often lower, but audiences routinely show up in theaters. Studios see this and try to adhere to the low-risk, high-reward formula. But “Sinners” and “Weapons” had bigger budgets with star-studded casts, and both paid off multiple times over. Now, the studio is getting good press for giving the productions the means to succeed in the first place.
Horror has always provided for the studios. It’s time for the studios to provide for horror.
Industry creatives are increasingly viewing horror as an untapped medium. Jordan Peele became one of the most sought-after filmmakers in Hollywood solely through horror. Ryan Coogler had made multi-billion dollar films, and then immediately turned to horror for his first original movie.
The lack of recognition for horror at the Academy Awards is also symptomatic of existing biases within the industry. Independent horror has given some of the past several years’ most groundbreaking and exciting films. From “Hereditary” to “Talk To Me,” indie horror has been loved by the masses, but neglected by awards ceremonies.
Horror is rarely recognized if it doesn’t come from a big studio, and even rarer if it doesn’t come from Hollywood. Take the 1998 Oscars, where a relatively weak Best Picture nominee class could’ve easily benefited from introducing broader audiences to Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s masterpiece “Cure,” now recognized as one of the best horror movies ever made.
Horror is universal in a way few other genres are. The Academy is finally starting to recognize international films for their merits; the next step is to recognize each genre within as well.
The perception of horror is finally shifting. “Sinners” has a legitimate shot at Best Picture. It’s one of the most universally praised films of the year and one of the most commercially successful, which usually leads to good results at the Oscars.
As Halloween approaches, don’t just view these horror movies as good for the time of year. Watch them as valid, comprehensive and important parts of the art form. From Hitchcock and Carpenter to Coogler and Peele, horror’s role in cinema has been invaluable, and that’s not going to change any time soon.
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