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Culture > Entertainment

The History of Horror at the Oscars

Elizabeth Lienhardt
The opinions expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not reflect the views of Her Campus.
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UCF chapter.

What do films like Halloween (1978), Hereditary, and The Shining all have in common other than being hit horror films? Despite all being major successes and iconic contributions to the horror genre, none were Oscar-nominated.

Considering their statuses as pop-culture pillars and the influence they’ve made on filmmaking, it comes as a shock to most who hear this anecdote. However, this isn’t anything far from unusual for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science, as it notoriously excludes the genre in its nomination and winners lineups. In the almost 100 years of Oscar ceremonies, only six horror films have been nominated for the coveted “Best Picture” award, with The Silence of the Lambs being the only winner. But why?

According to Tananarive Due, a Black horror and Afrofuturism professor at UCLA, “Horror, in particular, has had this reputation as sort of second rate: second rate skill levels, cheap scares, lots of gratuitous blood.” 

While the general public defines the genre from franchises like A Nightmare on Elm Street and Saw, the elements that make up these films can be less than stellar. These features could deter Academy voters from nominating horror films, whether from poor acting performances or a disorganized script. Don’t get me wrong—I love a good, corny, horror film. There’s nothing like watching Killer Klowns from Outer Space with friends and watching their reactions to its zaniness. But I couldn’t equate the quality of this film to something like Oppenheimer or The Godfather. 

This doesn’t mean there are outliers of the genre though, which is why films like Black Swan, The Exorcist (1973), and Jaws received critical acclaim and Oscar nominations. It is possible for a horror film to “sweep” at their ceremony, as The Silence of the Lambs won “Best Picture,” “Best Actor,” “Best Actress,” “Best Director,” and “Best Adapted Screenplay”—the third film ever to win all five categories. There are also subsects of the horror genre that the Academy loves to recognize, like Gothic horror films like Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) or more special effects-driven films like the Alien franchise. So it’s not like the horror genre goes completely unrecognized. But many films that are equally as good, if not better, than those nominated have been overlooked, resulting in infamous snubs like Toni Collette’s performance in Hereditary or Jordan Peele’s Us. 

However, this upcoming awards season could turn the tide in how voters approach horror films. 

One of the biggest standouts of this year is Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance, a body-horror film that follows a fading celebrity’s taking of a black market drug to regain her stardom. Alongside the social media buzz for its grotesque imagery and message, the film’s star, Hollywood legend Demi Moore, is currently the frontrunner to win “Best Actress” at the Oscars, having early success with her Golden Globes win for “Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy Motion Picture.” Based on her early success, Clayton Davis for Variety explains that her win “not only cements Moore’s legacy but also shines a long-overdue spotlight on horror as a genre worthy of awards season acclaim.”

But, The Substance isn’t the only horror film making waves this year. Jane Schoenbrun’s I Saw the TV Glow, Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu (2024), Scott Beck and Bryan Woods’ Heretic, Osgood Perkins’ Longlegs, and Fede Álvarez’s Alien: Romulus have all received critical acclaim and are eligible for Oscar nominations for the 2025 cycle. Considering that many of these fit into the Academy’s genre subsects, horror could gain greater voter recognition than ever before. 

Maria Lattila for Film Stories writes, “There’s a very high chance that at least one of this year’s horror films will get a nomination or two, but wouldn’t it be something if more than one was acknowledged in the same year? They wouldn’t be the exception, but the rule.”

As a film nerd and horror movie lover, I find this award season especially exciting. History could soon be made and justice for the genre could soon be served. The nominations for this year’s Oscars ceremony were announced on Jan. 23, and you can watch the awards ceremony on March 2.

Elizabeth (she/her) is a Staff Writer for Her Campus UCF, working toward her bachelor’s degree in English Literature with a minor in Theatre and a certificate in Editing and Publishing. Originally from South Florida, she dreams of becoming an author and landing her “big break” as a musical theater actor. She finds fulfillment in writing about mental health, music, childhood, relationships, and navigating uncharted territories. In her spare time, Elizabeth loves expanding her vinyl collection, reading literary fiction, watching Meg Ryan movies, and drinking iced chai lattes.