I Really Hope The Substance Helps the Oscars Rethink Horror

It’s never been a secret that horror doesn’t receive the accolades it deserves from the top brass in Hollywood – particularly not by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. I’ve always made it a point to remind people that a lack of awards has zero meaning when it comes to the quality of someone’s creation, from a film’s conception to those working in front of and behind the camera. Still, there’s something special about seeing the people and projects who made a significant impact on us through storytelling receive recognition, especially knowing what a big deal it is to many in the industry to be presented with a prestigious award for their hard work. Revenge filmmaker Coralie Fargeat’s body horror film, The Substance, could change the landscape of Oscar voters’ views of the genre.

The Academy Awards not only recognized The Substance with five nominations, (including Demi Moore‘s first Oscar nomination) for Best Actress in a Leading Role, Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay for Fargeat, and Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling; it also recognized Nosferatu in four categories, and Alien: Romulus was nominated for Best Visual Effects. (Margaret Qualley was unfortunately snubbed by the Academy after not being nominated in the Best Supporting Actress category for her turn as Moore’s other half, Sue, in The Substance.)

What makes the recognition The Substance is receiving from the Academy so noteworthy is that the movie is being included in some of the major awards categories. Horror has received well-deserved recognition over the years with a handful of nominations in other significant categories (i.e., Ridley Scott’s Alien won Best Visual Effects in 1980), but it’s rare to see performances, writers, directors, and movies as a whole recognized in the genre. For example, Nosferatu’s nominations span the cinematography, costume design, makeup and hairstyling, and production design categories, and the film could easily walk away with an Oscar in any of them. Still, one could argue that Lily-Rose Depp should have received a nod for her portrayal of the cursed Ellen Hutter, or that Robert Eggers could have been included in the Best Director or Best Adapted Screenplay categories.

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If The Substance manages to take home all five Academy Awards the film has been nominated for, it would be the most exciting sweep for the genre since The Silence of the Lambs in 1992. I know there has been discourse over whether the adaptation is a horror or a thriller, but I have always felt the movie was a proper blend of horror and psychological thriller. Jonathan Demme’s classic won Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay for Ted Tally, and the Best Actor and Best Actress awards for Anthony Hopkins and Jodie Foster, respectively. As a horror fan, I don’t want to get my hopes up, but if there was a time for horror to make a massive statement at the Oscars, now is the time.

Moore following in the footsteps of Kathy Bates winning the 1991 Oscar for Best Actress as Annie Wilkes in Misery would be a satisfying conclusion to her career-best performance and awards run since the movie came out — it’s criminal that the actress is only just celebrating her very first Academy Award nomination this year. The Substance joins other standout horror features that have been nominated by the Oscars in the past, including The Exorcist, Jaws, The Sixth Sense, Black Swan, and Get Out. Sadly, none of these titles took home the Best Picture prize, but the horror community is abuzz with the possibility The Substance could change the game.

The best part about The Substance receiving accolades at the biggest awards show in Hollywood is that it’s a body horror film centered on toxic beauty culture and pulls no punches in either regard. The message of the movie strikes directly at the heart of many problematic ideals in Hollywood when it comes to society’s (and the industry’s) unrealistic expectations, rampant ageism, and senseless beauty standards; women have always had to fight for basic rights over their bodies on multiple levels. In the film, Elisabeth and Sue fall victim to these idols and the flawed idea of perfectionism, destroying themselves along the way.

The Academy’s narrow view of horror has prevented countless movies, filmmakers, and entertainers from getting their due. There’s a sense of genre bias and unfair perception of horror as a whole, namely how the Oscars doesn’t respect the genre as a “serious” medium in the way they perceive heavy dramas. The truth is, horror is a special genre that houses various subgenres and experimental styles, with, yes, some of the most ridiculous movies ever made alongside — most importantly — groundbreaking films, profound tales, and unbeatable performances. The Academy needs to embrace the unique storytelling that is only available in horror and let The Substance be the beginning of a new era where the genre is taken seriously and given the respect it has always been owed.

The Substance is now available to stream at home.