As a horror fan, I was excited when I began to realize that the networks were finally taking a fresh look at horror TV. As with anything, though, once Hollywood realizes a successful formula, it is exploited. The market is soon to become inundated as more horror TV shows premiere. Like all markets, the bubble will eventually burst. The major question is when.
“The Walking Dead” was the show that made everybody realize that there was a strong market for horror on TV. Granted, “True Blood” premiered before, but it is more of a romance show with a slight horror background than a true in-your-face scarefest. “American Horror Story,” “Grimm” and “Once Upon a Time” continued the use of the classic horror formula.
After the first of the year, we will see a surge in horror TV shows with another at the beginning of the next fall season. Of course, we have all heard about “The River,” “The Munsters” and other projects that are being worked on right now. This is only the tip of the iceberg. Remember that if Hollywood finds a formula working once, it will be used ten times. If it works ten times, it will be attempted one hundred times.
As someone that has followed the horror industry for many years, I can see the bubble bursting around the mid-season break of 2012. I can see a handful of the new shows getting cancelled as people get tired of the idea of horror on TV. Many of the planned shows will be shelved to be forgotten over the years or turned into movies instead.
Traditionally, markets like horror TV ramp up in their first year, boom in the second and burst in the third. “The Walking Dead” came out last year, so this television schedule year (September through May) gives us the boom. The following season would give us the burst. Don’t worry, there will still be some horror on TV after that burst, but most of the shows will become nothing more than memories of a passing craze.
At this point, it is impossible to predict which of the horror TV shows will make it past the bubble burst. Ratings in November of 2012 will give us the best idea of which shows will survive. Those that are not make it are sure to be cancelled well before that time. The idea of having multiple shows based on the horror genre will go away for another decade.