Horror expert Xavier Aldana Reyes didn’t expect much when he first saw Coralie Fargeat’s 2024 film, The Substance. The movie, a graphic and disturbing body horror, seemed aimed at a niche audience – fans who already enjoyed the genre. He had no idea it would become as popular as it did.
Universal Pictures, initially slated to release the movie, shared this concern. Fargeat explained that the studio wouldn’t distribute her director’s cut as is, demanding changes—particularly to the ending.
Honestly, I was really surprised by how big “[Movie Title – please insert the movie title here]” became! After Mubi picked it up and gave it a proper cinema release, it just exploded, making over $78 million globally – that’s more than four times what it cost to make! It also started getting a lot of awards attention, which was fantastic, including a Best Actress Oscar nomination for Demi Moore. It’s always great to see a film like that really connect with audiences.
Body horror is a type of horror that focuses on disturbing and often graphic transformations of the human body. While it first gained popularity in the late 1970s and 80s with films like David Cronenberg’s The Fly, it’s generally appealed to a smaller audience due to its intense and potentially unsettling content, which often divides viewers.
Interestingly, many films now considered key examples of this sub-genre were originally released simply as horror movies. The label ‘body horror’ was added later, after they gained recognition.
Recently, more and more films are being intentionally marketed as “body horror,” and surprisingly, they’re attracting viewers who don’t usually watch horror. Films like The Substance, Love Lies Bleeding (2024), and I Saw the TV Glow (2024) have been widely released and received positive reviews from critics.
Julia Ducournau’s film Titane, a shocking and visually intense horror movie similar to The Substance, generated a lot of discussion after its debut at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, where it unexpectedly won the top prize, the Palme d’Or.
This trend is showing up in several TV series, including Alice Birch’s 2023 adaptation of David Cronenberg’s Dead Ringers – a six-episode horror series on Prime Video – and multiple installments of Guillermo del Toro’s eight-part Netflix horror collection, Cabinet of Curiosities (2022).
Ryan Murphy’s new show, ‘The Beauty,’ just launched on Disney+. It’s a horror series centered around an injection promising perfect physical appearance – and the trailer generated huge excitement, becoming FX’s most-watched trailer ever with almost 190 million views across social media.
The body horror genre is gaining popularity because filmmakers are using it to explore current societal fears. According to Sarah Lahm, a lecturer at the University of Leeds, films like Titane – where a killer becomes pregnant after intimacy in a classic car – reflect anxieties about control over one’s body and reproductive rights. These concerns have become more prominent in the wake of the #MeToo movement, during the Trump presidency, and with recent threats to abortion access.
According to Aldana Reyes, a professor of English Literature and Film at Manchester Metropolitan University and co-president of the International Gothic Association, creators are increasingly using body horror because it’s a powerful way to convey social and political messages.
He highlights Julia Ducournau’s 2016 film Raw, a disturbing coming-of-age story using cannibalism to represent sexual awakening, as a key moment in the rise of body horror films that engage with social and political issues. He adds that this trend has really gained momentum in the 2020s.
As a critic, I’ve noticed a real trend in recent films – they’re tapping into our collective unease about cosmetic surgery and its relationship with social media. It seems filmmakers are exploring how these platforms present these seemingly ‘perfect’ bodies and, crucially, how attainable – or not – they actually are. It’s a fascinating and relevant theme that’s really resonating right now.
Two recent shows explore the dangers of extreme beauty standards. The Substance features Elisabeth (Moore), a former actress who uses an experimental serum to regain her youthful appearance, embodied by Margaret Qualley. Similarly, the Cabinet of Curiosities episode The Outside (directed by Ana Lily Amirpour) tells the story of Stacey (Kate Micucci), who suffers a painful reaction to a lotion promising a dramatic physical transformation from unattractive to beautiful.
Emilie Blichfeldt’s film, The Ugly Stepsister, recently nominated for an Oscar, offers a fresh perspective on the classic Cinderella story. It centers on Elvira, one of the stepsisters traditionally portrayed as ‘ugly,’ and explores the extreme lengths she goes to in order to win the prince’s affection. The film depicts her physical and emotional pain as she resorts to dangerous and disturbing methods – including attempting self-surgery, intentionally getting a parasite, and even cutting off her toes – all in a desperate effort to fit the prince’s ideal.
Chloe Murphy’s work, The Beauty, explores similar ideas and also touches on current concerns about Ozempic, the popular weight-loss drug. Like the dangerous beauty injections in the story, Ozempic can cause significant weight loss, but its long-term effects are still uncertain.
As a big movie fan, I’ve noticed a lot of really interesting work in body horror lately, and it’s fascinating to hear Aldana Reyes talk about why. She makes a great point: many of the filmmakers – women and people of color especially – aren’t necessarily trying to make a body horror film. Instead, they’re using the genre as a powerful way to express really personal stories and messages. It’s less about the gore and more about what it allows them to say.
Several recent films – including Titane, The Substance, Tiger Stripes, and The Ugly Stepsister – explore how external pressures affect women by using unsettling imagery of the body. Interestingly, all of these were created by women filmmakers. The 2024 film I Saw the TV Glow, which similarly uses body horror to depict the experience of gender dysphoria, was directed and written by non-binary filmmaker Jane Schoenbrun.
Aldana Reyes explains that these groups are made up of people who have personally felt the sting of being judged. She points out that everyone can relate to feeling inadequate – whether it’s about appearance or not measuring up to certain standards.
I think women are often very conscious of how society expects them to look, with media constantly setting beauty standards. For transgender people, that scrutiny is even more intense, as others often closely monitor and judge their bodies.
Julia Ducournau has stated she doesn’t consider her films to be ‘body horror,’ despite using elements often associated with the genre. In a 2021 interview with IndieWire, she explained that her films are dramas and love stories, and she simply expresses herself through the depiction of the body. She considers the term ‘body horror’ acceptable, but doesn’t feel it accurately describes her work.
Although Fargeat has directly identified her films as belonging to this genre, she told Variety it’s an ideal way to portray the intensity of issues facing women.
Recently, many creators are using body horror not just for its shock value, but to show how characters feel about and connect with their own bodies. This is apparent in several new works that include unsettling physical transformations, even though they don’t fully fit into the body horror genre.
The Hulu comedy-drama Ramy, which premiered in 2020, mainly follows a young Muslim man’s life, but one episode shifts the story to focus on his sister, Dena, and the worries she’s dealing with.
Lahm describes a powerful scene where the character experiences hair loss while showering and discovers a lump in her breast. He notes that this episode unusually incorporates elements of body horror into a show that doesn’t typically feature them.
The Netflix series Russian Doll uses unsettling imagery, specifically body horror, to show Nadia’s (Natasha Lyonne) emotional pain and psychological state in its second season. One example involves the main character physically removing small, dark insects from under her skin.
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Aldana Reyes points out that the increasing acceptance of explicit content is contributing to the appeal of body horror. She notes a clear rise in graphic depictions – from vomiting to excessive blood – in television and film over the past decade or so, suggesting audiences are becoming more desensitized.
A 2023 study revealed that violence appears in 80% of American television shows, and some programs contain over 150 violent incidents every hour.
He notes that we may be seeing more violence and explicit content without being as shocked by it, making it seem more common. When you combine this with people’s desire to share personal experiences, especially those related to their bodies, it creates a perfect environment for the rise of body horror.
According to Aldana Reyes, body horror is gaining popularity with viewers for the same reasons it appeals to filmmakers and artists: its ability to explore powerful ideas and themes.
He points out that body horror has traditionally been seen as simply shocking or sensational, and awards have usually recognized its special effects rather than its deeper meaning. While The Substance certainly featured impressive effects, it was the film’s underlying message that truly resonated with audiences.
This message ultimately convinced Demi Moore to star in the film, despite the director believing she might find it too frightening. Moore explained to The Wrap that the script resonated with her on many levels, and while she isn’t like the character, she immediately recognized the potential for exploring complex themes within it – themes about how we treat ourselves.
Lahm believes the increasing sophistication and variety within horror are what’s attracting viewers. She points out that while horror has traditionally been made by and for men, films created by women, or focused on female characters, often delve deeper into characters’ emotions and psychological states, rather than simply aiming to shock the audience.
Both Lahm and Aldana Reyes point out that the recent rise in popularity of body horror is likely due to increased financial investment in the genre. A prime example of this is the show ‘The Beauty,’ which has a large budget and prioritizes visual appeal over deeper meaning.
Films like The Substance, The Ugly Stepsister, and Dead Ringers deeply explore how their characters develop unhealthy and damaging relationships with their bodies, often showing this through shocking imagery. In contrast, The Beauty only briefly touches on these issues – for example, it shows a woman wanting breast implants to gain male attention or an isolated man desiring attractiveness to have relationships, without really delving into the underlying causes.
I’ve been talking to Lahm, and it sounds like they’re ready to push boundaries. They’re hoping to move away from more conventional films like ‘The Beauty’ and really dive into some seriously unsettling body horror – the kind that’s challenging, maybe even a little shocking, and definitely leans towards arthouse cinema. They want to make things that really stick with you, and aren’t afraid to be a bit out there.
Aldana Reyes observes that body horror is becoming increasingly elaborate, costly, and varied, and anticipates this trend will continue. He expresses hope that more filmmakers who are women, non-binary, transgender, or people of color will explore this genre in the future.
He believes body horror is evolving to focus more on issues of identity and social justice. It’s becoming a genre that actively explores diversity and makes us think critically about it.
You can now stream Beauty on Disney+ in the UK. Disney+ subscriptions start at just £5.99 per month.
Authors
Molly Moss writes about the newest happenings in television, movies, and other entertainment for TopMob. She has a master’s degree in journalism and has contributed to major news outlets like The Guardian, The Times, and The Sun Online.
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2026-01-23 10:52