It’s interesting how horror works as a genre when combined with Black characters. Of course Black characters matter in terms of representing the population on a surface level, but presenting Black characters in horror stories, amidst our already horrific past, elicits a much deeper sense of dread when played out on screens. Horror by itself is already rooted in reality somewhat—everyone has seen a creepy doll like Annabelle or been spooked by the cemeteries that appear in several horror stories. I think what separates, and perhaps elevates, Black horror from general, superficially scary stories is the deep knowledge that the things typically depicted in Black horror were once (and still are) very, very real.

Eve’s Bayou (1997) dir. Kasi Lemmons

What made me think about this, in particular, was Terence Taylor’s “Wet Pain”, which may not even be ‘typical’ horror with evil spirits and possession, depending on one’s interpretation of…