Listen to Elvira–the horror genre is definitely on the right track
Cassandra Peterson–the face (and body) of Elvira, Mistress of the Dark for 40 years now–is very optimistic about the direction horror is going in nowadays. “I actually think it’s getting better,” she said in a recent interview with SFX Magazine.
The still-sultry actor said she likes the current trend toward “psychological thrillers,” rather than the more one-dimensional slashers of the ’90s. “The was a period in the ’90s and early 2000s where it got more CGI-based and so explicit, so gory,” she said. “I don’t mind blood and gore–I love it–but it was leaving nothing to your imagination.”
Peterson said the genre is coming back around “where people are making horror films that are more psychological thrillers–more in your own imagination. Not showing every single thing.”
She acknowledged that “there’s some great stuff out there,” and lauded the expanded role of women. “The greatest part is that there are more women involved in horror as writers, directors, stars,” she said. “That part infuses a whole, new energy into the horror genre.”
So, what are Peterson’s favorites among the more recent horror offerings? The actor singled out Midsommar, The Witch and Get Out, saying those films are “more like the ghost stories I heard as a kid around the campfire. They’re real. They’re more fun, while still being incredible scary.”
Peterson developed his career-defining Elvira persona in the early ’80s on a Los Angeles radio station–hosting Elvira’s Movie Macabre, a weekly B-movie presentation–a gig that led to a starting role in 1988’s feature film Elvira: Mistress of the Dark. That exposure made her a cult icon–as well as a brand that includes tons of collectibles and costumes.
Keep reading Horror News Network for the latest Elvira sightings.
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