History and Popularity of Thrillers

  

History of Thrillers: 

Thrillers date back to the 1800s/early 1900s novels, but the genre expanded much more in the 1900s. The work of Alfred Hitchcock (the master of suspense) is most notable for the genre, particularly with his films such as Vertigo, Birds and Psycho. Thrillers were originally intended to heighten feelings of Suspense, excitement, surprise, anticipation and anxiety. Most notably using devices such as Red Herrings, Plot Twists, Cliffhangers and even Unreliable Narrators. They most notably overlapped with other genres such as Horror and Detective Fiction. Whilst much of these ideas are still the same today, the genre ‘thriller’ is much more vague with now many different subgenres such as Spy Thriller, Crime Thriller, Action Thriller etc. And the ever-growing use of Hybrid Genres making most films, TV and pieces of fiction not feel exclusive to one particular genre today. 

 

Popularity of the Genre 

Thrillers are typically targeted at an age demographic of 18-25 as this age group are typically drawn to the realness and intensity of the storylines. However, sometimes they can be targeted slightly lower to age 16 to draw in more fans. Whilst thrillers don’t tend to be as Popular on TV as they are on the Big Screen, the release of ‘The Last of Us’ show boosted demand and popularity for the genre. There has been a slight decline in the demand for the genre since 2021, However, with new shows such as the last of us releasing, this is giving the genre new life and new demand heading into the New Year. Particularly, with Season 2 of ‘The Last of Us’ nearing and with ‘Squid Game 2’ releasing as another popular thriller.