Why We Like to Be Scared

Oct 31, 2026 11:00 AM UTCCourtesy of A24; Focus FeaturesColtan Scrivner is a psychologist and author of "Morbidly Curious: A Scientist Explains Why We Can’t Look Away." Oct 31, 2026 11:00 AM UTCIn publishing, the horror sub-genre is set to break new sales records. Readers aren’t the only ones seeking a good scare. Horror films dominated the silver screen this summer, with Backrooms and Obsession grossing more than $460 million domestically and roughly $900 million globally. Both films came from young directors who cut their teeth on YouTube, with their fingers on the pulse of this generation’s anxieties and fears. Even as major franchises like Spider-Man broke box office records, audiences turned two original horror stories into blockbuster hits.What is it about a horror story that allows it to latch its claws into our minds and pull us in? Why would we seek out an experience that produces in us a feeling of fear and anxiety? After all, we spend most of our lives trying to avoid these emotions. The truth is that humans love to be scared. We spend our time sharing and consuming scary stories; we take our kids to haunted houses; we dedicate an entire season to all things spooky. Unde...