What Age Should You See Your First Horror Film?

If you grew up loving horror, it's probably still something you can't get enough of. A new survey of 2,000 adults who celebrate Halloween found that 68% of them were into horror movies as kids, and that number is now up to 73% as adults.

Nearly two-thirds of people saw their first horror movie before they were 11 years old, and 60% think that watching a scary movie at a sleepover is a childhood rite of passage. As grown-ups, most tend to favour supernatural and paranormal films (43%), psychological thrillers (40%), and slasher movies (30%).

A massive 84% of people reckon that scary movies are an essential part of Halloween, and during spooky season, Americans watch an average of five horror films, with 23% watching ten or more. Almost half say that watching scary movies helps get them in the Halloween spirit, while 43% do it simply because it's tradition. Regardless of the season, nearly a third say horror is their favourite genre.

The survey, done by Talker Research for HI-CHEW, aimed to figure out people's Halloween styles based on how much horror they can handle. Turns out, 19% of people call themselves "gore hounds" who love as much horror and blood as possible. These people were also more into scares as kids (85%) and tend to prefer gummy Halloween sweets (34%).

Others fell into different categories. "Kitch-y classic Carls" like a mix of the classic horror movies and B-grade films (10%) and lean towards fruity sweets (23%). "Ghostbusters" (22%) love all things paranormal and were also big horror fans as kids (78%). Meanwhile, "Family-friendly Frans" (30%) prefer movies everyone can watch together and mostly love going trick-or-treating (54%). Then there are the "Scared-y cats" who like to avoid horror—only 36% of them enjoyed scary movies as kids, and only 34% do today.

Teruhiro Kawabe, Chief Representative for the USA & President, CEO of Morinaga America, Inc., said, "Many respondents (23%) say their favourite Halloween tradition is sharing parts of the holiday they enjoyed as children with their family today. Whether it's watching scary movies or looking forward to trick-or-treating, Halloween can bring families together with films, traditions, sweets, and more."

No matter how much horror people can handle, most say the best parts of Halloween are trick-or-treating or giving out sweets (55%), watching scary movies (54%), and decorating their homes (50%). Over half (54%) even say their love for scary films influences their choice of Halloween decorations.

One thing most Americans agree on is that scary movies are best enjoyed with snacks—popcorn (61%), crisps (47%), and pizza (44%) are all popular choices. Seven in ten (71%) also opt for a bowl of sweets while watching. Most prefer individually wrapped sweets (77%) over loose ones (15%), and it takes just 43 minutes into a film before the sweets bowl needs topping up.

According to the results, family-friendly Halloween films go best with gummy sweets (21%), while paranormal and supernatural films pair well with something chocolatey (37%). Fruity sweets are a favourite for animated horror movies (20%), and if a slasher movie is on, Halloween-themed sweets like gummy spiders or chocolate eyeballs (18%) are most popular.

Kawabe adds, "Halloween and sweets go hand-in-hand, and there are loads of options to suit everyone’s taste during the season. Whether you prefer chewy, fruity, sour, or gummy, you can’t go wrong with a mix of your favourites for the Halloween celebrations."