EJ Moreno looks at the rise of independent horror movies in 2024…
What a knockout year for horror overall. While the point of this piece is to spotlight what a fantastic ride it’s been in the independent horror space, we’ve seen major studios drop surprising bangers like The First Omen and Smile 2. But we are focusing on indie horror and how it’s seemingly become mainstream overnight.
Horror filmmakers and genre fans know the grind to this top spot in Hollywood wasn’t done quickly but a rigorous journey of passion for scaring us all. To celebrate what this year has to offer, we’ll spotlight a handful of our absolute favorite independent horror films of 2024 and look ahead to the future of fright.
You can’t mention horror from 2024 without highlighting what Neon did with their catalog. In what should be considered a marketing masterclass, the New York-based film company behind bringing Parasite stateside held nothing back when it came to promotion. With killer trailers, striking posters, and pinpointing the right voices in horror, Neon made sure they had what fans wanted.
They started their year with the religious romp Immaculate. Led by Sydney Sweeney (who also produced), the project used their star’s Euphoria fame gleefully but backed it up with a “did that just happen?” experience. It doesn’t have the shock and sex you’d expect, but it also doesn’t shy away from its bold imagery. The ending alone proves Sweeney’s excellent acting work and the power of the film itself. Even with this high praise, it’s the weakest of the three main releases from Neon.
Following Immaculate, Neon would finally pay off their explosive and impressive marketing campaign and drop Longlegs. This film was to horror what Wicked is to mainstream movies, a wildly marketed film that becomes inescapable. From your writer calling it “the scariest film of the decade” to the chilling trailers with Nicolas Cage showing off his skills, it was hard to live up to the hype. While not everyone fell in love with Longlegs, like its more diehard fans, it was still a testament to the good old-fashioned marketing.
Cuckoo brought out an actress from Euphoria to attract viewers like Immaculate and launched a great online campaign to drum up interest like Longlegs. It couldn’t make quite as big of a splash as its Neon peers, yet Cuckoo earns praise for its forward-thinking and bizarre plot. The indie movie space should welcome filmmakers who want to push boundaries, and it was nice to see Neon give them a playground.
A good sign of a healthy movie market is filmmakers and studios preparing for their future. Launching a movie to the heights of sequels takes time (and plenty of money), let alone a whole cinematic universe. We’ve seen studios give up after one flop, but we didn’t see that with the creators behind this year’s Winnie-The-Pooh: Blood and Honey 2.
After the lackluster first film, a sequel would’ve likely been canned if it came from Warner Bros. or Paramount. But Rhys Frake-Waterfield knows this gimmick of turning famous IP into horror movies could work. So, things came together in this sequel, making Blood and Honey 2 a worthwhile viewing. That comes at the right time, given the plans to launch the Twisted Childhood Universe.
Before Universal Horror could relaunch their monsters or Alien and Predator face off again, we are getting a collection of horror films based on tales from our youth. It’s genuinely wild but something only the boldness of indie movies could do. Let’s see if 2025’s Pinocchio: Unstrung can keep the momentum.
You can’t mention momentum in horror without mentioning Terrifier becoming the new face of slashers. With Terrifier and its 2022 sequel kicking down the door, Art The Clown walked through it and made himself home with Terrifier 3.
Now known as the highest-grossing unrated horror film of all time, this third installment in the ultraviolent slasher series became a true force of nature. Released during the Halloween season, Terrifier 3 would always make bank, but it was a wonderful surprise to see it become a true moneymaker. Director Damien Leone is cooking up magic with this franchise, and he’s found a way to make Art The Clown this generation’s Freddy Krueger.
Cineverse, the crew, and the cast have all found a way to make this one of the modern must-sees, creating an indie horror gem that became a sold-out Halloween costume at stores nationwide. Our top-dog studios have struggled to make new superstars, and it’s great to see independent films continue the legacy of making our faces of horror.
Before getting to our grande dame diva of the year, we must look at the collection of little indie darlings that splashed throughout 2024. IFC Films made a big splash with Late Night With The Devil, In A Violent Nature, and Oddity. All three films gave the studio solid box office numbers and a critical reception. Late Night With The Devil, in particular, did well for the studio and gave the best debut for an IFC Films release.
A24 is getting bigger and bigger, so calling it an indie feels odd, but it still falls out of the primary studio system and deserves a mention. Surprisingly, the company didn’t have its usual output of memorable work on par with a Midsommar or The Lighthouse. X and Pearl had the third movie in its trilogy, but MaXXXine didn’t have the same draw as its predecessors. I Saw The TV Glow, A Different Man, and Civil War also stretched the genre boundaries and one over fans. Late in the year, they also dropped Heretic and could see long-lasting love for that one.
No horror film this year has done what The Substance conquered. Somehow, this body horror film has entered the awards season conversation. That would’ve been unheard of any other year for a movie with a final act reminiscent of Brian Yuzna’s satirical body horror Society.
Sure, a rare horror film finds itself in this position; think of Titane or the online battle to get Toni Collette some love for Hereditary. It’s just wild to think The Substance, by French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat, was easily welcomed into the prestige world.
Maybe distribution newcomer Mubi, known mainly by cinephiles, helped the whole thing have a polished presentation. The marketing and release strategy paid off, and the film did well week after week. Or maybe the harrowing (and hilarious) tale of aging and Hollywood won over the right group, making it the cool, edgy project of the year. The quality of the film is top-notch, with two fantastic acting performances from our leads, and it’s as timely as ever. An Oscar nomination for a movie like this could shift indie horror like it’s never seen before.
Where does horror go from here? Focus Features will release the hotly anticipated Nosferatu during the end of the year. This could be one of the most significant releases not just this year but in quite some time. Given the pre-release hype, we could see an awards contender or a future cult classic, at the very least.
2025 is shaping up well with more of The Twisted Childhood Universe, another movie in the indie craze Hell House LLC, and whatever Oz Perkins is cooking up with The Monkey.
Let’s see if we can follow a strong 2024, but it will not be easy with such a stellar year for horror on the independent front. What are your thoughts? Be sure to let us know on our social channels @FlickeringMyth…
EJ Moreno