Horror Movies Aren’t Dead In 2020 Just Yet

January has seemed like the longest month ever, and especially for horror fans, who are quick to lament about 2020 horror movies being dead in the water before the year has even gotten started. While there have been quite a few offerings for wide release horror films in January 2020, such as The Grudge, Underwater, The Turning, and Gretel & Hansel, none of them have gotten off to a particularly strong start.

There have been some outliers, particularly for fans of H.P. Lovecraft and aquatic horror, as Underwater‘s director revealed that his deep sea monster was Cthulhu. January has also brought variety in sub-genres of horror, with The Grudge remake tackling the long-running Japanese horror franchise, The Turning addressing Gothic horror in an updated setting, and Gretel & Hansel following on the folk horror trend of 2019’s Midsommar.

January is considered to be a ‘dump month’ for studios, where they offload content because of numerous reasons, but that doesn’t mean it should be disregarded entirely. In horror, there have been some strong releases in the months of January and February, which are in the same category. One of the most popular films in the Final Destination franchise – the second – was a January release. Alongside that, From Dusk Till Dawn, Cloverfield, Tremors, and Andy Muschietti’s directorial debut, Mama, share a January release date. There has been a pattern established so far in 2020, but it’s only the first month of the year – and a new decade – so it’s far too soon to start waving a white flag. Horror isn’t dead; it’s only the beginning.

2020 Horror Isn’t Dead – Here’s Why

As a ‘dump month’, January releases tend to be the films that are on the lower end of the scale, though obviously, that’s a very subjective line of thinking. That said, even if January’s releases likely won’t make too many viewers’ “best of the year” lists, there’s still some incredible, highly-anticipated horror films in both original and returning franchises that are slated for the upcoming eleven months. Even February – which sometimes gets a bad reputation as well – has Leigh Whannell’s The Invisible Man reboot headed to theaters. As the winter months start to fade, A Quiet Place 2 is debuting in March. Crossover horror movies like Morbius and The New Mutants could bring a mixed bag, but it’s still an interesting avenue for both genres to explore further.

Just because mainstream horror isn’t doing particularly well, there’s always Sundance. Blumhouse’s ‘social horror’, Run Sweetheart Run has been getting rave reviews from the film festival, and has a 80% rating, as of this writing, on Rotten Tomatoes. The film, which has been compared to titanic hits like Jordan Peele’s Get Out, is a female-driven film that explores the aftermath of a blind date gone horribly wrong from director/writer Shana Feste. Also, in past years, the independent horror scene has been every bit as strong – if not stronger – than mainstream horror, so while sometimes it requires a bit of waiting to access films on the festival circuit, streaming platforms like Shudder are dedicated to bringing these titles to audiences in the comfort of their own homes.

As the year wears on, some massive franchises are going to release, including the ninth Saw movie, the fifth (and possibly final) The Purge, the reboot of Candyman, The Conjuring 3, and the second film in Blumhouse’s slasher trilogy from Carpenter’s classic, Halloween Kills. While certainly disappointing, January isn’t indicative of what the genre has on offer, and never really has been; it’s not the end by a long shot.