Shudder has unleashed the trailer for Queer for Fear: The History of Queer Horror, a four-part docuseries which explores the history of the LGBTQ+ communities cultural impact on horror and suspense thrillers.
From its literary origins with queer authors Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker, and Oscar Wilde to the pansy craze of the 1920s that influenced Universal Monsters and Hitchcock; from the “lavender scare” alien invasion films of the mid-20th century to the AIDS obsessed bloodletting of 80s vampire films; through genre-bending horrors from a new generation of queer creators; “Queer for Fear” re-examines genre stories through a queer lens, seeing them not as violent, murderous narratives, but as tales of survival that resonate thematically with queer audiences everywhere.
"Shudder wanted to do a follow-up to Horror Noire, which is a fantastic documentary about the history of Black people in horror films and how exploitation films are often the gateway for marginalized people to get into the industry," QFF executive producer Bryan Fuller tells EW. "I'd seen an early cut of [Queer for Fear] and volunteered my services to help get it into shape and then it slowly evolved into less of a movie, like Horror Noire, and more of a series."
He continues: "[We're taking] a broad definition of queer horror which includes includes Hitchcock films and women-in-prison films. In certain interpretations, a movie like Blade Runner can be seen through the lens of queer horror as a very specific story about marginalized people who want more rights and more life. So there's a wide variety of interpretations of queer horror and also of queerness. It just seemed that the project is so sprawling this really cannot be contained into an 80- or 90-minute narrative, because there are so many letters of the LGBTQ+ alphabet to cover."
“Queer for Fear” features interviews with series consultant Renée “Nay” Bever (“Attack of the Queerwolf” Podcast co-host), Mark Gatiss (Co-Creator, Writer & Actor, Sherlock and Dracula on BBC), Kimberly Peirce (Writer and Director, Boys Don’t Cry, Carrie (2013), Lea DeLaria (Actor, The Rocky Horror Picture Show (2000), Orange is the New Black), Jennifer Tilly (Actor, Child’s Play franchise), Karyn Kusama (Director, Jennifer’s Body, Yellowjackets), Leslye Headland (Creator, Russian Doll), Oz Perkins (Writer & Director, Gretel & Hansel), and more.
The conversation regarding queer influence in the horror genre has been long overdue, and kudos to Shudder, who have been stepping their pussy up in regards to including queer content on their streaming service for exploring this topic.
As a fan of horror and a content creator myself, I'm hoping we will see more queer filmmakers going out and creating horror content in the not-so distant future. Because it is something that is definitely needed.
Executive Produced by Bryan Fuller (Pushing Daisies, Hannibal), the first episode of Queer for Fear premieres on Friday, September 30 on Shudder with a new episode premiering every week.
Check out the trailer below...
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