Scared Sacred: Idolatry, Religion and Worship in the Horror Film is due for release early in 2019 from House of Leaves Publishing and is edited by Rebecca Booth (author of the forthcoming The Devil Rides Out [Devil’s Advocates]), Erin Thompson (owner and editor of The Backseat Driver Reviews), and RF Todd (Managing Director of House of Leaves).
Exploring the complex relationship between religious and supernatural themes within horror cinema, particularly in response to a mainstream reclaiming of these subjects in recent years, the book collects writings from academics, critics, and historians. Each chapter is a theological thread that touches on a range of subjects, from atheism to martyrdom to zoolatry. Limited editions of the book will be available for pre-order via a crowdfunding campaign commencing in September 2018.
As part of this campaign, several organisations have partnered with House of Leaves to offer crowdfunder rewards—including copies of Professor Douglas E. Cowan’s Sacred Terror: Religion and Horror on the Silver Screen (Baylor University Press, 2016); tickets to Grimmfest, Manchester, UK 2018; tickets to London Horror Festival, UK 2018; tickets to Boston Underground Film Festival 2019; an overnight stay at 30 East Drive and more!
As part of the reward tiers, House of Leaves presents a series of four collectible posters crafted by illustrator John Sowder, each a mash-up based on two films from each themed section of the book. Horror Homeroom can exclusively reveal the poster from the ‘Occultism’ section, portraying ‘possession’—demonic warfare, the horror of faith, and supernatural sacrifice. Based on themes discussed in Samm Deighan and Erin Thompson’s chapters, “I Believe in Death: William Peter Blatty and the Horror of Faith in The Ninth Configuration (1980) and The Exorcist III (1990)” and “The Last Temptation: Demonic Warfare and Supernatural Sacrifice in The Amityville Horror (1979) and When the Lights Went Out (2012)”, the poster features Father’s Damien Karras’ face superimposed over 112 Ocean Avenue…
Scared Sacred poster
The full poster set will be revealed in the coming weeks, as we draw closer to the crowdfunder. For more information, updates, and to register to pre-order the book, please visit: www.holpublishing.com.
You can find Samm Deighan’s full chapter from Scared Sacred on The Ninth Configuration and Exorcist III exclusively here and a preview of Alexandra West’s chapter on The Conjuring films here.
