Should Christians watch horror movies?
This simple question has sparked a massive debate in Christian circles. It all started when “Relatable” host Allie Beth Stuckey raised concerns about believers consuming entertainment designed to terrify them.
Movies like ‘Nefarious’ and ‘The Conjuring’ set up battles between good and evil, showcasing what happens when the demonic realm bursts into our lives.
Whether you agree with Stuckey’s argument that we’re not meant to watch content that stokes fear in our hearts, the conversation — especially as Halloween looms — is worth having.
Lamp of the body
At first glance, the simplest response to the horror movie question is a whopping: It depends.
Christians often have different convictions, and even seemingly simple questions should be met with prayer and action based on the convictions that come from seeking God’s will. That said, I think it’s essential to go a bit deeper.
Christians are called to guard our hearts and minds, taking great care with what we consume. Matthew 6:22-23 offers a stark warning many of us overlook when we watch movies, listen to music, or consume content that bends moral boundaries:
“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!”
The Bible is clear that we’re meant to keep our hearts and minds pure and focused on the Lord. But what does that mean for entertainment that deliberately frightens us or confronts us with evil? Does depicting something disturbing necessarily make a movie spiritually harmful?
Fear factor
I depart from Stuckey on the fear front. I have no problem watching content that stokes fear in my heart, so long as that fear serves a redemptive purpose. Sometimes fear is a storytelling tool that helps us understand the seriousness of evil, drawing us closer to our need for a Savior.
But I also agree with much of what Stuckey said about the dangers of some horror films. Much of the horror content on the market today is simply designed to disturb and perturb the mind, offering little more than jitters and insanely unpalatable imagery. The intent is simply to terrify, with no real purpose beyond the shock itself.
I’m not interested in that sort of content, and I don’t think it is honorable or helpful to the Christian mind.
We have to seek God when it comes to the level of horror and violence we’re willing to entertain, even if the end goal is a redemptive message. But I think the key question we should ask about every movie, song, and piece of entertainment we consume is: What’s the purpose?
Once I can assess the purpose of a project — and its fruits are generally evident — I have a pretty good idea of whether it’s worthy of my attention.
Good and evil
Movies like “Nefarious” and “The Conjuring” set up battles between good and evil, showcasing what happens when the demonic realm bursts into our lives. These films, though not for every believer, can help frame or even highlight a biblical understanding of evil.
Then you have movies like “Saw” and others like it — films that are grotesque and, from my perspective, fuel little more than a thirst for bloodshed and angst.
Christians need to be careful about the entertainment we consume. Many of us are willing to bend the biblical standard and ignore gore, sex, and excessive evil for the sake of entertainment.
Then I encounter verses like Philippians 4:8, which reads:
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things.”
Psalm 101:3 is similarly direct:
“I will not look with approval on anything that is vile,” it reads. “I hate what faithless people do; I will have no part in it.”
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Context and intent
None of us is perfect, but God consistently implores us to look upon good and holy things. If that’s the case, why are we making exceptions and subjecting ourselves to two hours of absolute debauchery, especially when the movie offers nothing redemptive in return?
The fact is, many horror movies today don’t fit into a biblical framework. They offer sadistic violence, torture porn, and demonic imagery that revel in suffering rather than revealing anything true about good, evil, or the human condition.
Ultimately, context and intent matter. The Bible itself contains difficult subject matter. Scripture covers murder, demonic activity, human depravity, and the consequences of sin.
But those accounts reveal truths about humanity, evil, God’s judgment, and our desperate need for redemption. I believe our entertainment choices should follow a similar pattern.
The question is whether a story exposes darkness for what it is — or encourages us to enjoy it, relish it, or embrace it.
The former can be worthy of our attention. The latter is not.
Allie beth stuckey, Horror movies, Christian living, Lifestyle, Christianity, Halloween, Entertainment, Faith
