Dread Central is an American website founded in 2006 that is dedicated to horror news, interviews, and reviews. It covers

horror films Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoc ...

, comics, novels, and toys. Dread Central has won the

Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award The Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award, often called the Rondo Award, is an annual award founded in 2002 that honors journalism, scholarship and film preservation in the horror genre, particularly of classic horror film and their modern-day counterp ...

for Best Website four times and was selected as

AMC AMC may refer to: Film and television * AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain * AMC Networks, an American entertainment company ** AMC (TV channel) ** AMC+, streaming service ** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company *** ...

's Site of the Week in 2008.

History

Dread Central was founded on July 4, 2006. When a venture to create a horror-themed cable television channel stalled, the web team left and established their own news site. In 2012, a negative review posted by Scott Foy attracted controversy when Foy and the film's director,

Jim Wynorski Jim Wynorski (born August 14, 1950) is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. Wynorski has been making B-movies and exploitation movies since the early 1980s, and has directed over 150 feature films. His earliest films were releas ...

, engaged in a verbal altercation online. On September 30, 2019, Jonathan Barkan announced he was stepping down as editor-in-chief. As of December 2021, Mary Beth McAndrews is now Editor-in-Chief and Josh Korngut is managing editor.

Website

The site's staff use horror-themed aliases. The website has a broad focus, and it covers both mainstream and fringe topics that range from horror films to comics to toys. Besides reviews and news, they also host several podcasts. Steve Persall of the ''

Tampa Bay Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', previously named the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It has won fourteen Pulitzer Prizes since 1964, and in 2009, won two in a single ...

'' states, "if it gushes blood or desecrates flesh, Dread Central covers it." The site is oriented toward a male demographic and favors edgy, exploitative films. After 10 years, Dread Central became reader-supported via

Patreon Patreon (, ) is a membership platform that provides business tools for content creators to run a subscription service. It helps creators and artists earn a monthly income by providing rewards and perks to their subscribers. Patreon charges a com ...

. This would make Dread Central the first genre news site to switch from being ad-supported to being crowd supported. Celebrity supporters include

John Carpenter John Howard Carpenter (born January 16, 1948) is an American filmmaker, actor, and composer. Although he worked in various film genres, he is most commonly associated with horror, action, and science fiction films of the 1970s and 1980s. He ...

Gale Anne Hurd Gale Anne Hurd (born October 25, 1955) is an American film and television producer, the founder of Valhalla Entertainment (formerly Pacific Western Productions), and a former recording secretary for the Producers Guild of America. Early life Hu ...

, Sid Haig, Adam Green, and

Darren Lynn Bousman Darren Lynn Bousman (; born January 11, 1979) is an American film director and screenwriter, best known for his work in horror films. He has directed four of the '' Saw'' films: '' Saw II'', ''Saw III'', ''Saw IV'', and ''Spiral''. He also direc ...

Other ventures

In 2007, Dread Central and VersusMedia announced ''Horror D'Oeuvres'', a competition for

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

s. In 2008, the site partnered with several other prominent horror sites and studios in a horror-themed auction to raise money for the

Entertainment Industry Foundation The Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), based in Los Angeles, United States, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit charitable organization of the entertainment industry. EIF funds more than 300 charitable organizations annually, both in the Los Angeles ...

. In 2013, they partnered with Gas Lamp Museum and the San Diego Ghost Hunters to organize a ghost hunt at the William Heath Davis House. The proceeds went toward upkeep for the historic site. Also in 2013, they began offering the "Box of Dread", a random package full of merchandise delivered monthly to subscribers, one of whom is randomly chosen to receive a "special edition" valued at $250.

CineMayhem

CineMayhem, a film festival for independent

genre film Genre film may refer to: * A film conforming to a well-defined film genre * Genre Films, aka Kinberg Genre, a television and film production company * ''Genre'' (1996 film), a live-action/animated short by Don Hertzfeldt See also * Genre, the ge ...

s, was founded by Heather Wixson in association with Dread Central's Indie Horror Month. The festival, whose inaugural date was March 2–3, 2013, is presented in

Thousand Oaks, California Thousand Oaks is the second-largest city in Ventura County, California, United States. It is in the northwestern part of Greater Los Angeles, approximately from the city of Los Angeles and from Downtown. It is named after the many oak tr ...

. The festival is backed by

Scream Factory Shout! Factory is an American home video and music company founded in 2002 as Retropolis Entertainment. Its video releases include previously released feature films, classic and contemporary television series, animation, live music, and comedy ...

Sideshow Collectibles Sideshow Collectibles is an American specialty manufacturer of movie, film, television and collectible action figures, statues, and high end pieces. Sideshow's licenses include ''Star Wars'', DC Comics, Marvel Comics, ''The Lord of the Rings'', Dis ...

Magnet Releasing Magnolia Pictures is an American film distributor. It is a subsidiary of Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner's 2929 Entertainment. Magnolia was formed in 2001 by Bill Banowsky and Eamonn Bowles, and specializes in both foreign and independent films. Mag ...

, and Breaking Glass Pictures.

Reaper Awards

Dread Central and ''

Home Media Magazine ''Home Media Magazine'' was a trade publication that covered various aspects of the home entertainment industry, most notably home video distribution via VHS, DVD, Blu-ray, and digital copy. The magazine also covered news relating to consumer el ...

'' present the Reaper Awards annually for the best

home video Home video is prerecorded media sold or rented for home viewing. The term originates from the VHS and Betamax era, when the predominant medium was videotapes, but has carried over to optical disc formats such as DVD, Blu-ray and streaming me ...

releases and

direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy wa ...

features. It is held at the

Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel is a historic hotel located at 7000 Hollywood Boulevard in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California. It opened on May 15, 1927, and is the oldest continually operating hotel in Los Angeles. History The hote ...

and is hosted by Steve Barton, co-founder of Dread Central.

DREAD

In 2017, Dread Central Media was acquired by

Epic Pictures Group Epic Pictures Group is an independent film and television studio engaged in the development, financing, production and distribution of film and television. Epic Pictures produces, finances, and distributes approximately twenty-thirty independent ...

. The independent studio announced it would be launching a new distribution label specializing in horror films released in theaters and on demand. On January 29, 2019, the label was renamed DREAD. Their first in-house produced film, ''The Golem'', will be the first film under the DREAD Originals banner. * ''Book of Monsters'' * ''

Candy Corn Candy corn is a type of small, pyramid-shaped candy, typically divided into three sections of different colors, with a waxy texture and a flavor based on honey, sugar, butter, and vanilla. It is a staple candy of the fall season and Halloween ...

'' * '' Director's Cut'' * ''Ditched'' * ''Extremity'' * ''The Golem'' * ''Imitation Girl'' * ''

Lasso A lasso ( or ), also called lariat, riata, or reata (all from Castilian, la reata 're-tied rope'), is a loop of rope designed as a restraint to be thrown around a target and tightened when pulled. It is a well-known tool of the Spanish an ...

'' * '' The Lodgers'' * '' Sacrifice'' * ''Slay Belles'' * ''

Terrifier ''Terrifier'' is a 2016 slasher film written and directed by Damien Leone. It stars Jenna Kanell, Samantha Scaffidi, Catherine Corcoran, and David Howard Thornton. The film follows partygoer Tara Heyes (Kanell), who becomes the target of a se ...

'' * ''To Hell and Back: The Kane Hodder Story'' * ''

Uncle Peckerhead ''Uncle Peckerhead'' is a 2020 comedy-horror film written and directed by Matthew John Lawrence. Plot The members of the band Duh (Judy, Max, and Mel) have all quit their jobs and are ready to embark on their first tour. The first roadblock on ...

'' * ''Vidar the Vampire'' * ''Villmark Asylum'' * ''Zombiology: Enjoy Yourself Tonight'' * ''

Zone of the Dead ''Zone of the Dead'', also known as ''Apocalypse of the Dead'' ( sr, italic=yes, Zona Mrtvih) is a 2009 Serbian horror film directed by Milan Konjević and Milan Todorović. It stars Ken Foree. Plot In 1986, in Chernobyl, a mass grave of bod ...

Reception

Dread Central was chosen as

's Site of the Week, in 2008. It was nominated for

Total Film ''Total Film'' is a British film magazine published 13 times a year (published monthly and a summer issue is added every year since issue 91, 2004, which is published between July and August issue) by Future Publishing. The magazine was launched ...

's Best Horror Blog, in 2010. It won the

for Best Website for the years 2009-2012.

References

External links

* {{Official website American entertainment news websites Horror fiction websites Internet properties established in 2006