February is Women in Horror Month. As it turns out, a majority of the horror movie audience is comprised of women, as was stated in The Guardian in 2016:

“In 2013, the hit The Conjuring had an audience composed of 53% women; The Purge had an audience of 56% women. Mama was 61% women. Even the Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake showed to an audience that was less than half men.”

There is no denying that women are all throughout horror. The terms ‘Scream Queen’ and ‘Final Girl’ were not created for the dramatic or romance genre films, or for men. Many horror movies are dominated with leading ladies that are above and beyond some of the most badass women on screen. Some personal favorite female performances are from actresses such as Barbara Crampton, Danielle Harris, Kathryn Isabelle, Jamie Lee Curtis, AnnaLynne McCord, Ashley Bell, and Lauren Ashley Carter, just to name a few. The list is truly never ending. Women in horror display a sense of strength and confidence against their male counterparts in many films.

Though many amazing women shine on screen, there are a multitude that shine behind the camera. This list is a credit to women in the director’s chair, in honor of Women in Horror Month. Female directors, as we know, are slim in numbers compared to the mass amount of men in the industry. So, let’s give it up to the female directors and applaud their works, providing their unique female perspective in the horror genre.