Mental Health and Horror White Noise

For our first episode in two months (), we’ve come back with a bit of a heavy one…mental health representation in horror. Starting with Scream 6 (2023) and working our way back to Psycho (1960), we talk about the negative effects certain representations of mental health in horror films have had.

We’re not mental health experts but two avid horror fans who believe this is an important conversation. While movies of the past can’t be (and shouldn’t always be) erased, what responsibility does the film industry need to shoulder when it comes to the representation of mental health in horror?

Content warning: discussion of mental health and some specific mental health conditions (relative to their portrayal in certain films)

Films/TV shows mentioned in this episode:
Scream VI (2023)
Split (2016)
American Horror Story: Asylum (2011)
Black Swan (2010)
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)
Psycho (1960)