Horror that you can visit, experience, and share is stealing the spotlight! While every hit is different, the secret sauce seems to be trendy themes targeting the younger generation and “expanded horror” that continues even after the credits roll.
The movie ‘Salmokji’ has officially surpassed 3 million viewers! This puts it at #2 for the highest-grossing Korean horror films, overtaking ‘Gonjiam’ (2.68 million). It is now trailing the #1 spot, ‘A Tale of Two Sisters’ (3.14 million), by only 140,000 viewers. ‘Salmokji’ tells the story of a filming team that visits a reservoir after a mysterious figure is spotted on road-view imagery, only to encounter something terrifying in the deep, dark waters.
‘Salmokji’s’ success comes in part from the voluntary participation of the audience. The Salmokji Reservoir, where the story is set, was already a famous haunt thanks to MBC’s ‘Midnight Ghost Stories’ and various horror YouTube channels. The fact that it is a real place sparked both curiosity and fear in the audience.
‘Salmokji’ created a fear that feels all too real. After its release, SNS was flooded with posts from fans who actually visited the Salmokji Reservoir in Yesan-gun, Chungnam, which in turn piqued the interest of potential viewers. This is similar to ‘Gonjiam,’ which was based on the long-standing urban legends of the Gonjiam Psychiatric Hospital. By using a fake documentary style to follow characters investigating the legends, ‘Gonjiam’ maximized the sense of reality. For both works, the experience does not end in the theater; the process of experiencing and sharing the horror becomes part of the content consumption.
The Netflix series ‘Girigo’ is following the same trend. Reaching #1 in the Global Top 10 (Non-English) shows in its second week, ‘Girigo’ follows high school students who are predicted to die suddenly due to a curse from a wish-granting app. It blends a traditional curse narrative with the familiar tool of a smartphone app to create a realistic sense of dread.
Along with the show’s popularity, the ‘Girigo’ app—available on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store—has become a hot topic among youth. The app boosts immersion with the same design, logo, and sound effects as seen in the series, and even includes features to upload wish videos or check a survival timer. The developer’s name is even set as a character from the show to extend the universe. Online communities and SNS are buzzing with comments like, “Has anyone actually downloaded it?” and “What happens if you use it?”
This is the common thread among recent horror hits: they focus on plausible stories and horror that lingers after the content is consumed. Gen Z (those born from the mid-1990s to the early 2000s), who are well-versed in SNS and online culture, react strongly to this kind of realistic horror.
The scalability of SNS is also fueling the success of the horror genre. Rather than watching alone, younger audiences prefer to discuss and share their reactions. This means the experience does not end at the cinema; it continues online with new ghost stories and reactions, extending the lifespan of the content. Recent hits have ridden this wave of Gen Z consumption habits.
Now, the key to success is how well a project taps into the sensibilities of Gen Z. Instead of just relying on shocking visuals, realistic stories and elements that can be experienced and shared are what truly capture their interest. Targeting Gen Z has become the new survival strategy for horror movies.
