The Attraction To Horror

• Temptation to play God?
• The possibility of salvation
• The opportunity to see things that are taboo
• Affinity with the monster within us all
• Addressing mans inhumanity to man
• We like to be scared... 

Target Audience 

• 14-35 year olds
• Male
• These teenagers & young adults want an adrenaline rush from being fearful of something/someone

The New Demographic

• The biggest and still growing demographic is women
• E.g. the demographic for The Walking Dead is 18-49

Horror is a great vehicle for this demographic because...

• It has a limited amount of ideas to be explored
• It often features metaphors for life
• It offers cautionary tales (horrific consequences of the actions of the protagonists)
• It explores social commentary
• It explores fear of the unknown
• It explores awareness of our own mortality and death (and our own attempts to cheat it)

Contemporary horror characters are indicative of postmodern society - antiheroes (they do bad things but for good reasons, therefore the audience forgives them). They tend to:

• Be confused & conflicted 
• Lie
• Be tough
• Not be graceful
• Have eccentricities 
• Function outside the mainstream & challenge it