The Conjuring: Last Rites obliterated the box office with an $83 million dollar weekend that blew even the loftiest projections out of the water. Sold as the final outing for Ed and Lorraine Warren, the proposed last chapter for the demonbusting duo is doing gangbuster business for a horror release, and it's performing that way both domestically and internationally. Thanks to a robust marketing campaign that pushed the "last time to see 'em!" angle, the horror flick is being hailed as a savior for the 2025 box office.
So, here I sit in my little corner of the internet. The guy that is always talking about how horror is the most dependable and desired genre for moviegoers. And here comes The Conjuring: Last Rites to not only prove me right again at the box office, but to do so in such bombastic fashion that I have to get on my soapbox and pull out the old sermon again: Horror Movies Are The Best Movies And Can Save The Movie Business.
No matter how much disrespect or dismissal the horror genre gets, it always ends up being the genre that performs the most consistently with audiences. Think about it: have you ever heard anyone talk about "horror fatigue" when it comes to movies? No! Because audiences will always crave horror. It's the most cathartic of the genres thanks to its potential to address the darkest corners of our souls. Humans will always be drawn to tales that let us touch the shadows with confidence that they won't touch us back.
Simply put, no other genre has the power horror holds over the human psyche. Just look at how much The Conjuring: Last Rites box office proves that. This is the kind of response no one expected and it proves why studios need to finally pull their collective heads out of their collective asses and realize that it's not massive tentpole blockbusters that are going to save movie theaters, it's horror movies.
Look at The Conjuring: Last Rites box office alongside two other hits from this year, Sinners and Weapons. It's clear as day that audiences are in the mood for horror movies that feel big. Instead of studios burning money on rebooting some flaccid IP from the 1980s, they should be putting that money into better-funded horror pictures. Viewers aren't just primed for the genre, they are actively begging for it with their wallets.
I could get into one reason why horror is so hot in 2025 but I'm sure that would mean the High Sheriffs would hogtie and gag me. Regardless of anything more topical, horror is also a genre that folks want to experience in a movie theater with others. They want to get scared together as a collective experience. That's part of the catharsis: knowing other people are just as scared as you are. You aren't alone in the dark. That feeling is something people need to feel right now, and the safest way to experience that is by sitting in a dim room with strangers and getting scared by a light show on the cave wall.
Horror is here to stay and it could be big, repeat business if studios started giving it the attention, money, and accolades it deserves.