PARAMOUNT SCARES: HOW WE TURNED A COMMUNITY OF HORROR...
...INTO A THRIVING HORROR COMMUNITY.
Since 1914, Paramount has been telling horror stories across film and television.
And after a century of slashers, psychological thrillers, and everything between, it was time to show we don't simply make horror stories — we lovethis entire genre just as much as our fans.
And a century means a lotof fans.
In service of that community, we set out to build Paramount Scares — a new home for all things horror.
OUR GOALS:
- 1) Embrace and grow a thriving community of horror fans, engaging with them 365, across every touchpoint: theatrical new releases, consumer products, events, social and influencers, film festivals, and more.
- 2) Super-serve fandom and passion — not just through watching and discussing horror, but through consistent touchpoints: content creation, partnership activations, live events, and more.
- 3) Drive engagement — both for Paramount Scares’ new social handles, but also across the entire Paramount horror ecosystem of IPs.
The results? Scary good.
Original content. Influencer collabs. Film festivals. Even the seat-backs on your next flight.
By carving up the genre and pooling together dozens of fanbases from across the horror space, Paramount Scares has connected with — and created — a community built on passionate fandom, both online and off.
Here’s how it all breaks down…
Client Paramount Pictures
Project Paramount Scares - Horror Sub-Brand Activation
What We Did
- Branding
- Strategy
- Paid Social
- Organic Social Content
- YouTube Content
- Influencer Partnerships
- Digital Partnerships
- Press Mailers
- Community Management
- Live Events + Activations
It's a horror mantra — never go alone. As a brand, we followed suit, bringing together the community at in-person events and activations that celebrated fandom, screened films, and served up exclusive moments and access.
PERRY MOUNT SCARES
The Chainsaw Awards by Fangoria was the perfect place to spill some blood, as it's one of the preeminent award shows serving the horror space. Exclusively on Shudder, our segment in the show starred a faux detective named - ahem - Perry Mount.
BOO-ZE BITES AND FRIGHTS
All that horror called for some frightful food! A select group of local LA influencers and creators were invited to “Boo-ze Bites and Frights,” a unique new event we developed in partnership with Street Food Cinema. The event boasted four film screenings, talent Q&As, trivia, photo ops, and giveaways, and was so popular that it has now blossomed into an annual two-weekend event.
A BLOODY DISGUSTING MARATHON
We collaborated online and off with Bloody Disgusting, one of the internet’s favorite homes for all things horror. We kicked off a Friday the 13th marathon at the Chicago Music Box Theater–on Friday the 13th! Prior to the marathon, Bloody Disgusting posted articles daily, which began on the 13th at noon and showed the first 8 Friday the 13th films.
SCREAM GREATS SCREENINGS
We know our horror community loves the classics, so we partnered with Fangoria and supported Theatrical re-releases for four fan-favorite films: The Crow, Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, Sleepy Hollow, and Addams Family Values. Each release had an exclusive specially-made bonus content piece that was featured before the film, three of which featured horror icon David Dastmalchian.
AMERICAN AIRLINES HORROR HUB
What’s scarier than a two-stop layover with checked baggage? Our exclusive new Paramount Scares entertainment hub. Partnering with American Airlines, our hub served up scares on every seat-back screen, delivering fan-favorite horror hits for any fan on a flight.
MIDSUMMER SCREAM
Our next stop on the fright train took us to Midsummer Scream, the world’s largest horror convention, where we hosted an in-world photo-op with Jason from Friday the 13th, as well as delivered giveaways and two talent panels — one of which launched our Paranormal Activity podcast.
FANTASTIC FEST TRIVIA NIGHT
Next up? A visit to the acclaimed genre festival, Fantastic Fest. There, we led the community through a special Paramount Scares trivia night, all in support of Apartment 7A's premiere. Given Apartment 7A would be the prequel to Rosemary's Baby, our questions reimmersed fans into the 1968 classic.
WATCHMOJO TAKEOVER
Nobody's safe from these frights, even on their own social platforms. We partnered with WATCHMOJO for a channel takeover with 7 new videos featuring some of our fans’ favorite titles.
INFLUENCER PARTNERSHIPS
To celebrate the Halloween season, we worked with horror creators to cook up some seriously scary fun assets. In all, 11 content creators celebrated iconic moments and films from across the Paramount Scares catalog through a range of moments.
SOCIAL CONTENT
Social was a cornerstone way for us to keep the frights going with our community 365, with a horde of custom-tailored content beats that not only explored iconic moments from across the entire Paramount Scares library, but engaged the broader community and encouraged fans to bring their IRL experiences into the fold.
FRIGHTFUL FARE
Nothing's scarier than an empty stomach. We dove into our foodie era with a killer lineup of recipes: Ghostface’s Guilty Pleasure from Scream, Sweeney Todd’s Butcher Barber Pies, and the twisted April Fool’s Day Twister Bread Braid.
DIE-O-RAMAS AND DEATH
Our Die-O-Rama series helped fans get crafty via miniature scenes from Pet Sematary, Sleepy Hollow, and Friday the 13th: A New Beginning. And for those looking for a few tips, our Villain Survival Guides dished out tips to survive Paramount's scariest foes.
HORROR FAN FUN
For our single fans, we crafted authentic dating profiles for Paramount's scariest villains (we hope they swiped left). After a little cosplay inspired by The Ring and The Addams Family, we then tested our film buffs' horror knowledge with the "Killhouettes Challenge."
SUNDAY SCARIES
Nobody likes the Sunday Scaries, so we added some fun to the ongoing social trend with a series of dedicated Sunday Scaries slideshows and short clips throughout the season, and even tied into A Quiet Place: Day One’s release.
YOUTUBE
Given their love of all things long-form, we extended the content campaign to our horror fans on YouTube, serving up extended clips from fan-favorite titles and other content exclusives.
MAILERS
Now, we know horror fans are collectors. Merch, memorabilia, collector’s editions, you name it–they love a good exclusive, and we aimed to deliver.
In 2023 and 2024, we set out to make something unique and exclusive for our fans: physical releases of Paramount Scares Volume 1 and 2. These sets brought together some of the most iconic films in Paramount Scares' library, and included an exclusive Fangoria magazine.
To launch Volume 2, which boasted a poster designed by artist Orlando Arocena in the collector’s edition, we developed a custom mailer loaded with relics and swag from fan’s favorite films.
Boxes included: Paramount Scares Vol 2 Boxset, Sleepy Hollow Prayer Candle, Rosemary’s Baby Hat, Paramount Scares Tote Bag and Sticker, A Slay Crop Top or a Camp Crystal Lake Shirt, Smile 2 Crossbody Bag, a Pin, a Patch and a pumpkin spice-scented Friday th 13th Air Freshener.
SMILE 2 SUPPORT
By amplifying the film’s cultural footprint and tapping into our passionate horror community, Paramount Scares helped support the theatrical and home releases of Smile 2, leveraging a strategic mix of community engagement, exclusive content, title cross-promotions, and hands-on community management.
Resonating with both casual and die-hard horror fans, our content helped drive authentic conversations that helped sustain momentum through the film’s lifecycle. The result? A horror-thriller sequel that slashed its way to number one at the box office and at home.
A HORROR COMMUNITY TO DIE FOR
As a new home for all things horror, Paramount sought to bring together fans of fear wherever they might be hiding, serving up unmissable moments online and off.
Slashing at the old brand-building playbook, we built out new ways of engaging fans across multiple franchises — a blitz of events, stunts, partnerships, and content that brought life (and a little death) to fans and the horror genre they love.
- 289 TITLES Across film and TV
- 51 HANDLES Across Paramount Scares Library
- 6 NEW CHANNELS Launched across social and YouTube
- 18 LIVE EVENTS In 2024
- 20.4M IMPRESSIONS Across Social
- 28M FOLLOWERS Across Paramount Scares and Paramount horror IPs, All Platforms
- 7.5M TOTAL REACH Across all Influencer Activations
- 29M TOTAL REACH Across all Mailer Recipients
- SATURN AWARD Nomination for The Crow 4K Remastered 30th Anniversary Release
- 2 CHAINSAW AWARDS Nominations for AQP: Day One – Best Actress and Yellowjackets – Best TV series
