Horror Movies and the Christian

Game and movie studios are looking to cash in on horror this October. A recent Variety article recommends eight horror movies, three horror streaming series, and one horror book all releasing this month. ScreenRant lists 13 scary movies debuting in October. A Reddit thread identified 13 new horror games debuting this month alone.

“Interactive terror commands billions of hours of player engagement and livestream viewership,” says Game Vault. Sudden scares experienced while interacting with horror content cause “the exact same physiological cascade as it would if you met an apex predator in the wild. … As the immediate perceived danger passes without physical consequences, your brain’s reward pathway releases an intoxicating rush of dopamine and endorphins.” This keeps gamers coming back for more.

And when it comes to movie theaters, violence and gore are more popular than ever. Horror film Other Mommy debuted at number one domestically over the October 9 weekend, bringing in $27.5 million in ticket sales. Barron’s reports it’s the sixth horror film to open at No. one this year. The genre raked in a record-setting $1.4 billion in 2025 and is on track to exceed that before the end of 2026.

So it isn’t just a spike in horror entertainment consumption due to the Halloween season. There is a general year-round rise in the genre’s popularity. Reuters reported in July 2025 that “scary movies account for 17 percent of the North American ticket purchases, up from 11 percent in 2024 and 4 percent a decade ago.”

Psychology Today says that “we are living in a new Golden Age of horror,” and that “scary movies may be a symptom of anxious times, and a way to cope with them.” But is this sort of content really helpful? Or could the dark themes and violent murder scenes have a damaging effect?

Assessing the Mental Impact

“[When watching horror films], your heart pumps and the adrenaline flows, and your attention narrows in, even as you know you are at home or in the theatre and there is no real danger,” says Healthline. The adrenaline spike can make it difficult to sleep after a movie. There is also the potential for disruptive nightmares to be triggered by a film’s disturbing images. And some sensitive individuals are prone to increased levels of anxiety and panic.

A Penn State article says, “Many studies have shown that consistent direct exposure—especially among young people—to graphic material, decreases empathy and increases aggression.” And a recent study found that “violent video gaming predicted 14.1% higher aggressive behaviors and was also linked to anxiety and insomnia in teens.”

Simply Put Psych reports that “repeated exposure to violent video games, including horror games, reduced physiological responses to real-world violence.” An article featured by the National Library of Medicine says, “Exposure to violent content can decrease empathy and cause increased aggressive thoughts, anger, and aggressive behaviour.” And that “time spent watching screen violence has also been directly associated with increased bullying and cyberbullying in both boys and girls.”

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry says, “Hundreds of studies of the effects of screen violence on children and teenagers have found that children may become ‘immune’ or numb to the horror of violence, begin to accept violence as a way to solve problems, imitate the violence they observe on screens; and identify with certain characters, victims and/or victimizers.”

Yet despite the evidence showing horror content’s traumatic effects, modern psychologists often suggest that viewing it is a “safe” way of experiencing emotions like fear, anxiety, and disgust. However, God’s Word gives very different counsel, and we would be wise to consider it.

Divine Counsel

The Bible says that by beholding the glory of the Lord, we are “transformed into the same image from glory to glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18). If beholding God’s glory through the study of His Word changes us for good, what effect does exposing ourselves to violent, fear-inducing content have?

Jesus taught: “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” (Matthew 6:22–23).

According to Jesus, what we view can fill us with either light or darkness, good or evil. Perhaps King David knew this principle, which is why he said, “I will set nothing wicked before my eyes” (Psalm 101:3). And the prophet Isaiah describes the righteous man as one “who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed, and shuts his eyes from seeing evil” (Isaiah 33:15).

Romans 1:32 warns that those who take pleasure in and approve of wickedness will not be in God’s kingdom. The scenes of violence and demon possession depicted in horror films originated with the devil. He’s the first murderer and bends all his strength “to steal, and to kill, and to destroy” (John 8:44; 10:10). Repackaging evil as entertainment is one of his most effective tactics to degrade and destroy God’s image in humanity.

Don’t fall for the devil’s tricks. We have clear biblical counsel on the type of content we should consume.

“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things” (Philippians 4:8).

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