Marketing can make or break a movie. But sometimes a marketing campaign can be so wild that it ends up generating more buzz than the movie itself (for good or bad reasons). But, as the old Hollywood saying goes, “There’s no such thing as bad publicity.”
Plus, there’s no wilder genre in Hollywood than horror, so naturally, it has some of the most unhinged marketing campaigns in cinema history. Some excited audiences, some terrified them, and others even led to very real lawsuits and cease-and-desist orders. While a few of these campaigns haven’t aged well, they all, for better or for worse, made a huge splash at the time and are still memorable to this day.
Let’s take a closer look at a few horror movies that had some seriously wild marketing campaigns, from Alien (1979) to The Monkey (2025), Cloverfield (2008), and more. Watch them now on streamers like HBO Max and Hulu.
The Blair Witch Project (1999)
The most iconic movie marketing campaign ever is The Blair Witch Project. In 1999, the general public was still wildly bewildered by the internet. The average adult might use a computer at the office, but aside from emails and using some kind of data entry software, their familiarity with the World Wide Web was minimal. That created the perfect breeding ground for Blair Witch.
The movie purported that actual “found footage” from three young filmmakers, who set out to find a local legend and then never came home, was discovered in the woods. A website was created detailing the history of the Blair Witch, fake obituaries were written for newspapers, and the entire thing was sold as a true story.
At the time, making websites wasn’t easy, so its existence lent credibility to the legitimacy of the legend and the alleged disappearances. People went wild, and the film became a huge success. As all horror fans know, the found footage style became so popular that it remains a mainstay in cinema to this day. The Blair Witch Project is perfect for anyone who loves a great found footage movie, like Paranormal Activity (2009), or subtle horror hits, where the real terror comes from the small sounds heard off-screen and growing tension, like Skinamarink (2022).
Paranormal Activity (2009)
Speaking of Paranormal Activity, it’s another found footage horror movie with a great marketing campaign. The film is about a young couple who move into a new home and quickly start experiencing… well, paranormal activity. But once they start trying to capture it on film and pay it more attention, the otherworldly entity gets more powerful, and the haunting intensifies.
By 2009, we were firmly in the Facebook era, and the internet was commonplace, so the movie never tried to pretend it was real. Premiering at Screamfest in 2007, Paranormal Activity scared the crap out of everyone thanks to its excellent pacing and perfect jump scares. But with its shoestring budget, the film didn’t get a huge marketing campaign. Instead, the filmmakers used Paranormal Activity’s genuine scariness to sell it. Over the next few years, the movie was played in select college towns, knowing that college kids would spread the word to their friends. The film even launched a website where fans could request Paranormal Activity screenings in their cities.
Whereas Blair Witch preyed upon people’s naivety about the internet, Paranormal Activity used the new generation’s tech savviness to its advantage. Soon, nightvision trailers began popping up, showing audiences going absolutely feral at screenings, and by October 2009, the word-of-mouth blitz had turned Paranormal Activity into the buzziest movie of the year. It went on to gross almost $200 million and spawned an entire franchise.
The Fourth Kind (2009)
One film that learned about the internet’s prevalence the hard way was The Fourth Kind. The movie claimed to be based on real events and used the very real and tragic disappearances of people around Nome, Alaska, as a selling point, claiming that it had evidence that aliens abducted them. Even worse, it used fake interview segments allegedly obtained by Chapman University as further evidence. The Fourth Kind even created fake news articles about the disappearances. However, by 2009, everyone was online, and the truth quickly came out.
For its fabricated news articles, the movie got slapped with a $22,500 lawsuit. Chapman University also revealed that those interviews never happened, and the people of Alaska were (naturally) very mad that The Fourth Kind used actual missing persons cases to sell a movie. In the end, the film definitely caused a commotion, but not in the way the filmmakers probably hoped. But while the campaign may have backfired, it definitely got people talking.
If you love alien encounter films like Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) or No One Will Save You (2023), this is the film for you.
The Exorcist (1973)
Just like Blair Witch, The Exorcist was an incredibly lucky film that came out at just the right time, creating the perfect storm for a cinematic phenomenon. An alleged demonic possession (that was actually just a mix of hoax, hysteria, and mental illness) loosely inspired the movie (and book) about a teenage girl suffering from an aggressive possession.
1973 was pre-internet, so fact and fiction easily blurred with misinformation, and Christianity had a strong grasp over America. Therefore, a movie about demonic possession claiming to be a true story was easily believed by the average viewer, and from there, The Exorcist just let religious fanaticism do what it does. It didn’t take long before the “outrage” began from Catholics, both those calling the movie heresy, and others saying it was the most pressing and necessary film ever, finally unveiling the truth about how evil and demons are trying to possess everyone all the time. The scandal caused an absolute frenzy, which then led to frenzied viewers having frenzied reactions, like a form of mass hysteria.
People walked out, some vomited, others had mysterious health emergencies in theaters (which were likely just panic attacks in an era before people understood what those were), and some even (allegedly) passed out. Naturally, reports of possessions also spiked after the movie’s premiere as the religious delirium continued its spread.
So, all Warner Bros. had to do to market the movie was sit back and watch the hysteria do all the work. As the movie’s notoriety grew, so did its box-office returns, with audiences clamoring to see what all the fuss was about. The New York Times even wrote an article titled, “They Wait Hours to Be Shocked,” which reported that at some NYC theaters, people waited up to four hours to see the movie.
Cloverfield (2008)
J.J. Abrams’ monster masterpiece Cloverfield was an early example of something going viral, utilizing hype to get people talking on Facebook and through texting. Initially, the movie unveiled posters without any title or release date, simply showing a headless Statue of Liberty looking out over a destroyed Manhattan skyline. It also premiered a teaser trailer that didn’t play out like a typical trailer and instead felt like a two-minute short film of the movie’s opening party scene… before revealing that something was attacking New York.
Still, it never showed the monster, using the mystery to build even more hype. Cloverfield’s title was also mysterious. It was the working title of the movie because it was a street near Abrams’ offices, and he knew that the nonchalant title would keep his little monster movie a secret. The entire goal of the campaign was to keep Cloverfield and its plot a total mystery until audiences were seated in the theater, while also building up anticipation to sell tickets. Somehow, it worked.
If you love kaiju films like Godzilla (2014) or Pacific Rim (2013), you’ll love Cloverfield. But it’s filmed more like a horror movie than an adventure film, giving it a unique vibe within the monster movie genre.
Carrie (2013)
When Carrie was remade in 2013, the studio put on a publicity stunt in a West Village coffee shop where a customer gets angry and goes on a telekinetic rampage, all allegedly in front of unsuspecting customers. Watching the clip now is cringeworthy, and the acting is an absolute abomination. But at the time, it was a huge viral success, scoring over 80 million views on YouTube alone.
Variety reports that it even became the eighth most-watched YouTube video of 2013. The stunt not only went viral, but it also got the media talking, with articles popping up everywhere from Business Insider to Mother Jones, The Hollywood Reporter, and more.
If you’re a fan of Carrie (1976) or love other Stephen King adaptations, the 2013 version is a fun watch (despite its cheesy marketing attempts.)
The Monkey (2025)
Another King adaptation, the author’s short story, The Monkey, premiered on the big screen in 2025. The film depicts the horrific events that befall the poor victims who come into contact with an evil monkey toy, including one very tragic finale for a group of cheerleaders on a bus.
To promote the movie, Neon actually drove a bloody bus full of decapitated cheerleaders around Hollywood in front of all the tourists. The stunt was shocking and was met with mixed reviews. Bloody Disgusting was one of the publications to share the news, and comments on their Insta post range from “Now that’s some guerrilla marketing!” to “I love horror but this is too far.” But for viral marketing campaigns, it doesn’t always matter if the talk is good or bad, as long as it gets people talking.
For those who haven’t seen it yet, The Monkey has the wild kills of Final Destination (2000) and the dark humor of Happy Death Day (2017), so if that sounds like a good combo to you, this is a must-watch.
Psycho (1960)
Did you know that Alfred Hitchcock invented the rules of modern cinema? Before Psycho, movies would just play on a loop, and you came and went whenever you wanted. But because of Psycho’s massive plot twist halfway through, Hitchcock demanded that theaters couldn’t admit anyone to the movie after it had begun. So, instead of running on a loop, theaters offered start times for each showing (something they still do to this day, thanks, Hitchcock!)
This also served as a great marketing campaign. Long lines formed outside the theaters underneath giant signs that read “No one… BUT NO ONE… will be admitted to the theater after the start of each performance.” This obviously got people talking, increasing excitement for the film, and turning Psycho into a cultural phenomenon. The New Zealand Herald reports that when adjusted for inflation, Psycho earned about $468 million in AUD (or over $313 million USD).
For fans of slasher movies like Halloween (1978), you can thank Psycho for being an early precursor to the genre. It’s also great for anyone who loves movies with shocking twists like Se7en (1995).
Alien (1979)
Similar to how Cloverfield never showed the monster to build hype, the original 1979 trailer for Alien never actually showed the iconic xenomorph. Instead, it’s two minutes of atmospheric footage looking at space and an egg, mixed with quick shots from the film, all tied together with maddening, ear-bleeding audio. The vibe is pure confusion and chaos… exactly what Ridley Scott wanted viewers to feel walking into the theater. Smaller radio teasers featuring nothing but atmospheric music and the line “in space, no one can hear you scream” were also played, amplifying the tension and mystery of the movie.
Then, as Bloody Disgusting shows, the movie’s premiere was absolutely epic, and the theater was turned into a set piece of its own, letting viewers walk through corridors of the Nostromo and past props like xeno eggs and even the full-sized fossilized engineer prop, among others.
Alien is easily the best alien film ever made. If you love movies like Signs (2002) or Independence Day (1996), then buckle up, because Alien is so much scarier. Trust me.
M3GAN (2022)
Peak virality came in 2022 with Blumhouse’s M3GAN. The horror movie was so bombastic, wild, campy, and fun that it arguably can’t even be called a horror movie. Alas, here we are. If you’ve been living under a rock, let me introduce you to the M3GAN dance.
The dance scene was heavily featured in the movie’s trailers (which have amassed over 70 million views on YouTube) and was instantly memed. Blumhouse and Universal saw this as a total lean-in moment, and soon, M3GANs were everywhere: dancing in malls, on top of buildings, and in football stadiums.
The marketing campaign’s popularity worked. The movie became a massive hit, and M3GAN even returned for a sequel in 2025, complete with more dancing and a fabulous pink bob wig. If you love great horror comedies like Death of a Unicorn (2025) or Heathers (1988), you gotta see M3GAN.
