Skeptical sniffing at the seeming silliness of lowbrow topics such as Bigfoot, UFOs, or conspiracy theories is neither wise nor productive. When the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) was first formed in 1976, its mission was partly to combat popular culture myths such as astrology, psychics, and UFOs. Whether skeptics and scholars like it or not, popular culture is a main driver of public belief—and ignoring topics such as ghosts, QAnon, and psychics doesn’t make them go away.
Horror films are no exception, and they influence public beliefs about ghosts and the paranormal. From classics including The Exorcist, The Amityville Horror, and The Entity to more modern f ranchises such as the Conjuring films (which have rehabilitated the tarnished reputations of Ed and Lorraine Warren, notorious for exploiting frightened homeowners), there is no shortage of “true” ghost stories: see, for example, Joe Nickell’s “The Conjuring: Ghosts? Poltergeist? Demons?” in the March/April 2014 Skeptical Inquirer; my article “Reel or Real? The Truth Behind Two Hollywood Ghost Stories” in the March 2005 Skeptical Briefs; Scott Stine’s article “The Snuff Film: The Making of an Urban Legend” in the May/June 1999 SI; and Brett Taylor’s “Hollywood Curse Legends” in the November/December 2017 SI.