Halloween Express decided to see what horror movies are the most popular in different parts of the United States, and now we can psychoanalyze different regions until we’re all uncomfortable!
Alien was the winner by a long shot minus Delaware and Rhode Island, who favored Psycho. Psycho then becomes the most popular and following that we see a lot of love for The Shining in the West and Midwest, some The Conjuring fans in the middle and southeast states, and Texas loving The Exorcist.
Since horror movies are meant to channel our collective societal anxieties, we may interpret the popularity of Alien as an American resonance with themes of the predatory feminine and even xenophobia (or am I thinking too much and Alien is just so good?). The subversion of conventional, domestic happiness in Psycho also seems to resonate with American viewers.
I’m not surprised to see The Shining up there, as it’s such an American horror film. The Overlook Hotel in Colorado, as a symbol of American built on the graves of Native Americans channels a dark history in the country’s optimistic and hopeful mythology. The religious themes of The Exorcist and The Conjuring are popular in the Bible belt, also unsurprising (although The Conjuring is pretty new in comparison to many of the other movies).
They also mapped the volume of searches by city, if you’re looking for something more specific.
Films are obviously more popular in places where they were filmed, like The Shining, and Dawn of the Dead.
Halloween Express also compiled a chart of which movies are available on Amazon, Netflix, and various streaming services you can check out. Do your tastes match up with your state/city?
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