Horror doesn't generally make Marvel money, but there have still been some very profitable fright flicks, with the most successful being surprising. Most are probably aware by now that 2017's IT, an adaptation of Stephen King's classic novel of the same name, is the highest-grossing horror movie ever, at least when not adjusted for inflation. The film hauled in over $700 million at the worldwide box office, screaming by previous record holder The Sixth Sense like Pennywise in Bill Denborough's basement.
There's also all-time horror classics that most movie buffs are aware made tons of money, especially when adjusted for inflation, but even without doing so. These include The Exorcist, Jaws, Halloween, Alien, and The Silence of the Lambs, just to name a few. Then there's surprise success stories like World War Z, which stands as the highest-grossing zombie movie ever, despite being far from the league of beloved hits like Shaun of the Dead, Dawn of the Dead, and Zombieland.
However, as could probably be guessed from the title of this piece, none of the films previously mentioned are actually the most profitable horror movie of all time. When considering that, one has to weigh in not just size of gross, but the budget it cost to get there. For those about to bring up The Blair Witch Project, no that's not it either, although that's a close guess.
The Most Profitable Horror Movie Isn't What You Think
Despite grossing $248.6 million worldwide on a reported budget of only $60,000, The Blair Witch Project, no longer holds the title of most profitable horror movie. It was usurped for that crown in 2009 by fellow found footage hit Paranormal Activity. Oren Peli's demonic scare-fest was shot for a mere $15,000, and went on to gross $193.4 million worldwide. It also spawned a franchise that's earned nearly $900 million total, which stands in stark contrast to Blair Witch's sequels, which both flopped.
Even after the cost of re-shooting Paranormal Activity's ending, and the heavy viral marketing costs for both films, Paranormal Activity still comes out on top in pure profit. Paranormal Activity is exactly what any studio hopes for when they pluck a cheaply made film festival darling out of obscurity, and release it wide. While movies like IT and The Exorcist have made huge bank, they also costs millions to produce, while Paranormal Activity was literally profitable after its first day in theaters. One wonders if another cheap indie horror will eventually come along to knock it off its perch.