It’s a tale as old as time. You make a scary movie that is beloved by audiences, praised for its performances, an actual cultural touchpoint and it doesn’t get nominated for an Oscar. Despite horror getting the cold shoulder from the Academy year after year, it still plays a leading role in many Oscar winners’ journeys to the gold.

From Bong Joon Ho to Tom Hanks, horror laid the foundation for a long and windy path to Academy approval. For many artists, horror serves as an accessible entry point into film. The genre is known for making the most of small budgets, casting unknowns and offering opportunities to showcase range. So many heavy hitters of TV also got their start in horror, like Jennifer Aniston’s key role in Leprechaun or Adam Scott with long hair in Hellraiser: Bloodline.

No matter the box office success and avid fan bases, scary movies have been looked down upon by the Academy as disposable entertainment. Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance is only the seventh horror film to be nominated for Best Picture, but it has all of us genre heads thinking once again, is this a sign the industry is starting to appreciate horror as “cinema”? Also, have we considered that the Academy might be full of a bunch of scaredy cats? Just a theory.

So, in honor of awards season, let’s raise a vial of fake blood to ten Oscar winners who got their start in horror. The Academy may not want to it it, but they’ve been under the genre’s influence this whole time.

Bong Joon Ho: the genre-bending genius who conquered the Academy

Before he made history with Parasite, Bong Joon Ho was already redefining genre filmmaking—starting with 2006’s The Host, a monster movie with just as much biting social commentary as his later Oscar-winning masterpiece. While The Host thrilled audiences worldwide, it took more than a decade for the Academy to catch up to him, eventually awarding Parasite four Oscars—Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best International Feature Film.

“[Parasite is] an unreal masterpiece. My brain was malfunctioning for half of the movie,” says Nina, a perfect encapsulation of both the film and the general state of anyone watching a Bong Joon Ho movie. Hottamales23 adds, “Everything that could be said about this film has already been said, I promise. Genius in real time.”

Bong himself has spoken about how genre filmmaking gives him the freedom to explore social issues in ways that more conventional dramas can’t. And if Parasite proved anything, it’s that a film can be thrilling, darkly comedic, deeply unsettling and still take home the biggest prize of the night. Bong’s career is clear demonstration that playing with monsters—real or metaphorical—can lead to the golden statue.

Guillermo del Toro: from bloodsucking bugs to the big catch

If you’ve ever wondered what happens when a horror-loving filmmaker is finally given free rein to make a full-fledged romance, look no further than Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water.

On Mimic, Ethan sums it up with, “Another shining example on why Guillermo del Toro should be allowed to do whatever he wants.” It’s safe to say that if anyone deserves to be Hollywood’s reigning king of monsters, it’s del Toro. He made us fear vampires, root for misunderstood creatures and believe in fairy tales with teeth—all before charming the Academy into handing him an armful of Oscars.

Jamie Lee Curtis: the scream queen who took a multiversal detour to Oscar glory

The horror genre has a long history of iconic final girls, but Jamie Lee Curtis is the undisputed scream queen. Her debut in John Carpenter’s Halloween made her an instant star, and for decades, she was synonymous with slasher films. Her role as Laurie Strode not only defined her career but a whole subgenre.

Fast-forward to 2023, and Curtis finally took home her first Oscar for Everything Everywhere All at Once, proving that an actress who once fought off Michael Myers with a knitting needle could also deliver one of the most delightfully unhinged performances in recent memory. In a year that saw numerous beloved ing actresses, Curtis’s transformation into the deadpan IRS auditor Deirdre Beaubeirdre resonated with both critics and audiences alike, affirming that her talent was far more than just her scream queen legacy.

Curtis has always been vocal about her appreciation for her iconic horror role, once saying, “I wouldn’t have anything in my life without Laurie Strode. Nothing. I wouldn’t have a career.” She’s been a fan favorite since 1978, and her Oscar win felt like a victory lap for horror lovers everywhere, especially the countless women who made their mark in slashers and carried the genre into the mainstream.

Peter Jackson: from buckets of blood to a Best Picture sweep

Before Peter Jackson was King of the Shire, he was elbow-deep in fake blood. His feature debut, Bad Taste, was a splatterfest of grotesque alien carnage, which Jackson not only directed but starred in (as multiple characters!).

Then came Braindead, a film so gross that it might have single-handedly raised the global demand for fake blood. It’s a cult classic that still gets ed around as a prime example of the kind of creativity horror filmmakers can pull off with a limited budget.

Honestly, Jackson’s blockbuster career still carries his horror DNA. That scene where Bilbo turns demonic for a split second when he sees the ring? Pure nightmare fuel. The Battle of Helm’s Deep? A straight-up zombie siege. Jackson’s shift from splatter films to epic fantasy wasn’t as drastic as one might think, because his storytelling has always been about pushing the limits, whether in blood or spectacle.

By the time The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King hit theaters, Jackson had already built a reputation for visual grandeur, but this film took it to new heights, sweeping the Academy Awards with eleven Oscars, including Best Picture. Return of the King was not only the first fantasy film to win Best Picture, it marked Jackson’s rise from low-budget horror icon to one of the most celebrated directors in Hollywood.

Rico put it best, “This whole trilogy is a five-star, I love Peter Jackson, thank you Peter Jackson.”

Booking The Lord of the Rings gig was a surprise to some given his genre background, but Peter Jackson its to using several of Cronenberg’s soundtracks as temp music prior to hiring Shore. According to Jackson’s biography, “Some of the more obvious choices, such as James Horner’s score for Braveheart, seemed predictable and clichéd, whereas once you added Howard’s music to our pictures, they immediately became atmospheric, dark and evocative.”

Turns out, it was a perfect fit. Shore’s epic compositions for the trilogy earned him three Academy Awards (plus later a fourth for Hugo). Proof that sometimes, horror DNA is exactly what a film needs to elevate it to greatness. “Howard Shore is the MVP,” says Eric. And we agree.

Kathryn Bigelow: from Western vampires to making Oscars history

Long before she became the first woman to ever win Best Director (yes, it took until 2010), Kathryn Bigelow was redefining horror with Near Dark, her stylish, neo-Western take on vampire mythology. A movie that proved two things: (1) Bill Paxton was born to play a bloodthirsty maniac, and (2) Bigelow knows how to craft atmosphere.

Then came The Hurt Locker, a tense, heart-pounding war thriller that earned her a historic Oscar win. Not only did it beat Avatar (directed by her ex-husband, James Cameron), it also solidified Bigelow as one of Hollywood’s boldest directors. “One of our finest screen artists of adrenaline hones in on the American addiction to it at the cost of everyone else,” says Josh.

In a Guardian interview, Bigelow said, “I’m drawn to provocative characters that find themselves in very dangerous if not epic situations.” It’s clear that Bigelow’s horror roots continue to inform her mastery of suspense and action, and we can only hope that one day she’ll return to her genre roots once again. A vampire war film, anyone?

James Friend: from DTV vampires to prestige war drama

If you had “cinematographer of A Vampire’s Tale wins an Oscar” on your bingo card, congrats, you need to log off Letterboxd for a while and get some fresh air. James Friend spent years working on low-budget horror and thriller films before landing his biggest gig yet: shooting All Quiet on the Western Front, which won him the Academy Award for Best Cinematography. Gone were the days of shooting direct-to-DVD bloodsuckers—now he was crafting stunning, brutal war imagery that left audiences emotionally wrecked or, like Seth, “in complete awe.”

Friend credits horror for starting his camera and lighting career, specifically when he saw Alien for the first time at thirteen: “I didn’t know how to articulate who was responsible for the atmospherics and why I was so drawn to it.” A true testament to the power of horror as not only a career launcher but an infinite well of inspiration.

The Nightmare on Elm Street franchise was actually a breeding ground for superstars. Laurence Fishburne also appeared in Dream Warriors as a young orderly, Johnny Depp got his big break in the original A Nightmare on Elm Street, and director Renny Harlin got to debut his talent with the fourth film, The Dream Master, later giving the world a personal favorite of ,ine, Deep Blue Sea.

While Patricia only starred in the third film, she still feels fondness for her horror roots. “I love horror movies,” she says. “I watch them all the time and I plan on doing more horror movies in the future. Being part of that franchise is super cool, and I’m really grateful to be a part of it.”

Francis Ford Coppola: from B-movie horror to Hollywood legend

Before The Godfather made him a legend, Francis Ford Coppola was just another young filmmaker hustling to make a name for himself. Enter Dementia 13, a low-budget horror film produced by Roger Corman, who basically made him an offer he couldn’t refuse: “Here’s a few bucks, make me a Psycho knockoff.”

Coppola delivered a moody, eerie little thriller that, while not exactly Hitchcock-level, still showed early flashes of his directorial genius. That gig led to bigger things—like writing Patton (his first Oscar win) and then directing The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, which swept the Academy Awards and cemented him as Hollywood royalty. Coppola’s early work in the genre wasn’t just a stepping stone—it was a testament to how horror can nurture a filmmaker’s creativity and vision, ultimately leading to one of the greatest filmographies in history.

Tom Hanks: the low-budget boy-next-door to the high-budget boy-next-door

Long before he was winning Oscars and making us cry over volleyballs, Tom Hanks made his film debut in 1980’s He Knows You’re Alone, a slasher about a killer targeting brides-to-be. Hanks plays a charming psych student who, in true Final Boy fashion, starts theorizing about fear and survival (spoiler alert) only to escape the movie completely unscathed.

Apparently, in the original script, Hanks was going to be another casualty. But, that’s right, even in his first horror role, he was too likable to kill off. He returned to the genre in 1989 with Joe Dante’s The ’Burbs and later in a 1992 episode of Tales from the Crypt, but hasn’t done horror since—unless you count David S. Pumpkins, and I do.

Well, that knife rack movie got Hanks his SAG card and America an Oscar-winning Dad.

Final Thoughts: the Academy ♥ Horror (even if they pretend they don’t)

For years, the Oscars have dismissed horror—but time and time again, the genre has launched some of Hollywood’s biggest careers. From directors to actors to composers, the path to gold is paved with blood, guts and a whole lot of screams.

So, if you’re an up-and-coming filmmaker dreaming of Oscar gold, consider making a horror movie first. Who knows? Maybe in a few years, you’ll be standing on that stage, thanking the Academy and your first gore cannon operator.