My parents never let me watch horror movies growing up. So whenever my friends with cooler parents invited me to a sleepover, the first thing we did was find the scariest movie we could and peek at it from behind the couch. I adore horror movies. As I’ve gotten older, learned more about film and acting and actually entered the business, I’ve only become more fascinated by them.
Horror movies present a unique challenge to actors in that they demand a level of commitment and energy unlike many other genres. I was lucky enough to audition for one recently, too, and I learned a lot that I’m very excited to share. Let’s talk acting in horror movies: from what it demands, to the audition, to the acting itself.
Kickstart Your Career in Horror
Horror films tend to get a bad wrap: they’re often seen as cheap exercises in delivering even cheaper thrills. To some extent, this is arguable—because when the objective is simply to scare a person, the bar is low for the story and acting around those heart-racing moments.
So it’s fair if you’re thinking: “Fraze, I appreciate your passion, but I don’t think horror is a good career move for me.” Well, did you know that Jamie Lee Curtis, Johnny Depp, Tom Hanks, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Aniston and Patricia Arquette all got their start in horror films? For early- and mid-career actors, horror is an excellent genre to work in. The fanbase is often ravenously loyal, it’s relatively easy to come by because of how many student and indie films use the genre and it’s constantly evolving.
Creating a truly great horror movie means throwing out old tricks; writers and directors are always dreaming up new ways of putting the spook into cinema.
Horror as Art, Horror as Commentary
Before I jump into horror from the actor’s perspective, let me take a second to defend the genre. Yes, there might be fifty schlocky bloodbaths to one classic piece of cinema … but hoo boy there are some incredible horror films to experience!
Take the chilling cinematography and effects of The Exorcist (1973) as an example, or The Cabient of Dr. Caligari (above), a silent German classic from 1920 that influences creepy dream sequences to this day. Modern horror films like The Babadook (2014), Get Out (2017) and Midsommar (2019) have become important vehicles to explore theories as wide-ranging as post-natal depression, racism and trauma.
Like science fiction, horror is a genre that dazzles its audience with its thrills, tropes and stereotypes … so much so that they often miss the subtext of the film’s message. This makes them incredibly effective vehicles for artistry, or deep thought, or revolution.
Acting in Horror Movies
But enough film school: let’s get back to the task at hand and get you acting in horror movies. The first thing you need to know is horror is a very demanding genre. If you harbour scream queen aspirations, you’re going to want to get your actor’s toolkit in tip-top shape.
Your Body
Well-rounded fitness is going to be your best friend in horror. The amount of running, crawling and struggling in horror films is unparalleled. For this reason, focus on improving your cardio and your mobility. I would recommend some kind of functional fitness like bouldering, swimming or mixed martial arts so that you’re improving your coordination alongside your fitness. You might have to run through a dark forest with uneven terrain or scale a tree or hold your breath underwater to escape the killer or pursue your target.
You should also take some stage combat classes. It’s very likely you’ll be handling weapons and performing all kinds of acts of simulated violence. There’s a real art to this, not to mention a heap of safety measures you’ll need to bear in mind. On set, you will have some instruction (if you don’t, talk to the producer immediately) but it helps to be familiar with the base concepts so you’re not playing catch-up on the day.
Your Voice
Honing your physical fitness will help your vocal fitness, but you’ll need to have a daily vocal practice too. This is textbook acting stuff, but I cannot stress enough how important your voice is, particularly when acting in horror movies. You’ll need to work in extreme vocal ranges: screaming, growling, shouting and crying are just a few examples, all of which can be very taxing and even dangerous if you don’t do them properly.
Start simple. Don’t launch right into a terrified scream because you’re likely to take in too much air and blow out your vocal folds. Imagine you’re calling to a friend across the street with a “Hey!” Pitch it a little higher than your comfortable vocal range and try to move it into your nasal cavity. Ground yourself and wave while you do it–adding a physical action to your voice will help your body make the appropriate adjustments because it suddenly knows what it’s trying to do. If you’re working on a scream, start by imagining you’re lifting something heavy to engage your head voice and start quiet then slowly, gently, increase the volume. If you feel any scratchy or straining sensation in your throat, stop. Screaming should feel easy: babies do it all the time.
Making crazy sounds takes a lot less effort than what it sounds like. It goes without saying that you should warm up and cool down every single time. Here’s a great video on screaming in metal music that’s totally applicable to what we’re talking about here. It has great explanations on avoiding damage, warming up your voice and making sounds that are inhuman in the easiest way possible.
Your Mind
What I’m really talking about in this instance is your imagination and mental stamina. Drawing from personal experience in horror movies is hard and will perhaps fall a bit short when it comes to portraying authentic terror at the sight of a shapeshifting demon crawling towards you down a hallway. The best tool you have in horror is a vivid imagination that will allow you to fully commit to the crazy given circumstances of a scene in a believable way.
Remember that your character doesn’t know they’re in a horror movie, so when they see their friend being torn to pieces by a savage beast, it isn’t special effects and makeup, it’s actually happening right before their eyes. The only way to do that well, over and over again until the director gets the take they want, is to let your imagination take the reins. Also, remember that whilst the character is going through incredibly traumatic stuff, you’re not. It’s all make-believe. When the scene is over, you can laugh with the cast and crew and be yourself again. Let your imagination take a quick breather then let it take over again when it’s time for the next shot.
How to Audition for a Horror Movie
Auditioning for horror movies is hard, and I say that from recent personal experience. My friend and I got together to shoot the tape, and the scene went like this:
We were recent lovers who were obsessed with each other—flirting and telling each other all of the outrageous things we wanted to do together. Shortly after that, my friend’s character was mauled to death. I had to try and save them, but it was all in vain and the scene ended with my character staring in disbelief at their lover’s corpse.
We had to do all of that in my living room, worrying about what the neighbours might be thinking (they actually came over and asked if we were okay–very embarrassing). So, here’s some tips from that experience.
Frazer’s Audition Tips
Tip number one: tell your neighbours what you’re doing. We were lucky that they knocked on our door and didn’t call an ambulance, the police and the fire brigade all at once. If you have to do a lot of screaming and crying, let your neighbours know that it’s all pretend.
Tip number two: commit, hard. The only way that scene was going to work was if we put our egos on the shelf and just did it. Remember when we were kids and we would come up with all kinds of embarrassing games of mums and dads and playing doctor? It wasn’t embarrassing then because it was just a game. Same goes for acting. It’s not real, it’s not embarrassing, it’s just a game.
Tip number three: warm up. Like, really warm up. More than what you usually would. Your body needs to be fully engaged for these larger-than-life scenes. If your body is cold, then much like that jaded kid in the playground who thought “make-believe was dumb”, it won’t come along for the ride.
Acting in a Horror Movie
If you’re lucky enough to land the role, you have a very fun experience ahead of you on a horror movie set. With so much tension present in horror films, and the need to constantly maintain that level when the cameras are rolling, the vibe on set can be heightened, and a little, well, silly. So let ‘s look at some strategies for acting in horror movies that ensure your performance pitches at the right tone and doesn’t end up looking (too) schlocky.
The Writing
Whilst you might be lucky enough to land an amazing script like Hereditary or Midsommar, there’s a good chance that you might be working with some weaker writing. No shade on the genre, but the priorities are often focused on the scare factor rather than the character development or plot.
My recommendation to you is to focus on what your character wants, along with any clues as to their personality. This will help you make grounded choices, bring authenticity to the part and ensure they don’t come across as fodder for the next chainsaw they stumble across. Remember that it’s not so simple as to say “they want to stay alive” or “they want to kill the monster”, it’s about how they go about that. Are they courageous? Stupid? Intelligent? Inept? These kinds of character markers will determine how they approach any given scene—rendering your choices more believable.
Imagination and Style
Horror films are often larger-than-life, so you need a super vivid and active imagination to meet the demands of the scene. You can hone your imagination a number of ways: reading lots of books, watching lots of movies, creative writing, improvisation, clowning, tabletop roleplaying games–the list goes on. The more you can utilise your imagination, the more you can feel out and justify the world of the story, which leads to a more engaged performance.
This may also help you lock into the style of the horror genre as well. Get comfy with the genre and what to expect. For example: the stakes are through the roof for all characters involved and they need to care immensely about something–whether that’s their own survival, protecting their child or hunting down a gang of drunk teenagers. This sometimes leads them to do the kinds of stupid things that make an entire cinema full of people moan in unison: “Let’s split up, we’ll find the amulet faster that way!” As an actor, it’s your job to a) Be ready for these kinds of moments and b) Play them truthfully.
Keep the Terror Fresh
You will need to keep the character’s terror fresh, even after shooting the same scene over and over again. Your imagination is your best friend here, but you’ll also need to manage your energy effectively. The days and nights will be long and taxing. Make sure you’re eating well, drinking plenty of water and getting as much sleep as you can. While waiting for your scene and in between takes, make sure you’re resting actively.
You don’t want to completely zone out and have to drag yourself back to reality when the director yells action, so keep your brain active with a crossword, a conversation with another actor or crew member, or some light exercise like stretching. My acting tutor described these in between moments as letting the energy simmer. When it’s go time, crank up the gas and let it boil over. When the scene is done, turn it back down and just simmer for a while.
A Grounded Performance
Forget the blood and guts, the monsters and killers. Set aside the jump-scares and chases, the faces in the mirror and the creepy dolls. For all the trimmings of the horror genre, remind yourself that you’re there to do the same job as an actor playing Hamlet or Stanley Kowalski or Nora Helmer. Ground your performance by doing the prep you would for any other role: script analysis, character study, rehearsal.
You’ll end up smelling like roses, no matter the project. It reminds me of a great quote by master of horror Christopher Lee: “Every actor has to make terrible films from time to time, but the trick is never to be terrible in them.”
Conclusion
I think actors working in horror often don’t get the credit they deserve. Giving a great performance in horror is a tremendously demanding feat and it leaves audiences mind-blown when they see it. If you want to work in horror, the last piece of advice I’ll give is to go and watch horror movies. Here are some recommendations, some classic examples of modern horror: Talk to Me, Hereditary, The Woman in Black, The Evil Dead, Midsommar and Late Night with the Devil.
Identify for yourself what makes them good or what makes them bad. When are you most engaged with an actor’s performance? What makes you recoil What feels like a well-deserved scare rather than a cheap, jumpy grab? Understanding the mechanics behind a great horror film, or any film, will undoubtedly make you a more effective actor.
Hope this helped. See you around the traps!