Unsuspecting victims walk down the street, going about their day-to-day lives. Unbeknownst to them, a killer clown, blood splattered across his painted grin, lurks behind them, preparing to attack. His dirty hand grips a rusty knife as he jumps from the shadows, ready to strike.
But what if this haunting nightmare was nothing more than an innovative marketing scheme? Modern horror movie marketing teams have begun using actors to promote their films, scaring their audience where they least expect: outside the cinema.
However, this new marketing tactic has sparked controversy, leaving people to wonder: is this way of marketing ingenious or insensitive?
Smile 2, sequel to the 2022 hit movie Smile, hired actors to stare through windows of apartment buildings, Jumbotrons, and busy streets, with the franchise’s signature smile on their faces. These frightening encounters were then filmed and posted online, aiming to generate buzz for the new movie and create a more “immersive” experience.
However, this marketing tactic is not effective for all potential viewers. Sophomore Austin Stone said, “They [the marketing tactics] are pointless and stupid because I’m not going to look at some creepy person smiling and be like, ‘Oh my god, I need to watch the movie.’”
Similarly, Terrifier 3 hired actors dressed like the movie’s antagonist, Art the Clown, to “terrify” bystanders in public settings, such as conventions, malls, and Spirit Halloween stores.
US World Languages Teacher Julie Cove said, “I think that [the marketing technique] is smart because a lot of the magic happens when no one is prepared.”
Stone disagreed. “It is insensitive because they are going into someone’s personal space and parading on them. I think it is weird and unwanted. I don’t think it benefits their movie,” he said.
According to a survey of 61 Shorecrest students, 36.9 percent of the Upper School considers this way of marketing as both ingenious and insensitive, rather than explicitly one or the other. Additionally, 16.9% find it solely ingenious, while 21.5% view it as purely insensitive, and 24.6% believe it to be neither good nor bad.
However, a significant downside to this unconventional form of marketing is that it can have long-term effects on mental health.
According to Long Island University’s Digital Commons, children or hypersensitive adults watching horror movies or scary trailers could cause them to develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
After seeing this type of footage, a viewer in distress may avoid dark rooms and locations that remind them of the production, overcome with memories of the scenes implanted in their mind, instilling a chronic sense of unease in them.
Cove said, “I feel that [interactive promotion methods] are not acceptable because we are not giving the kids or the young adults the option to not be scared, but if it wasn’t young kids and everybody was above 18, I feel like that would be fine.”
Shorecrest students have mixed opinions on these new marketing methods. Stone said, “Well, it’s legal because of freedom of speech, so it is acceptable. Is it annoying? Yes. Is it rude? Yes. But it is acceptable.”
Freshman Ella Matthews considers the reactions entertaining. “I feel like some of them [social media clips] are really funny because he [the paid actor] is just chasing people randomly,” said Matthews. “[For] some of them, I would actually scream if I saw that in real life.”
Eighth-grader Harper M. agreed. “It would be really funny, though, if your friend was there [being scared], you would laugh at them,” she said.
According to IMDb, Terrifier 3 has grossed $87.3 million worldwide, a drastic comparison to the $15.1 million “Terrifier 2” has generated. This is due in part to the $500,000 Cineverse spent on marketing for the new movie, a figure alone surpassing the $250,000 budget for the entirety of Terrifier 2.
Still, people believe that horror movies can better promote their movies in other ways. Sophomore Brady Moyer said, “If you actually dress up as the clown and go to the mall, I feel like that is not as efficient as putting up a screen somewhere that just plays really good clips of the movie.”