Audience Research
Thriller
The target audience of thrillers tends to be fairly similar to horror as the films follow very similar conventions (low key lighting, dark plots, blood and guts etc) therefore just like horror films, thriller films tend to attract audiences of 15-25 with films falling either under the 15 or 18 certificate ratings. To gain a wider target audience and improve profits most thriller films (like horror films) tend to very rarely have an 18 certificate as you can still get just the right amount of violence and blood whilst keeping the film at a 15 certificate and therefore not blocking out over a quarter of your potential audience. Having said that a lot of the target audiences for Psychological thrillers are 18+ as they involve a lot of violence and psychological issues which would be disturbing for younger viewers, this could cause nightmares for younger viewers and cause them to be very scared for a longer period of time. Also Political Thrillers appeal to an older target audience of both genders, as it has more political interest which stereotypically interest the older generation rather than the younger generation. 15+ is usually the age rating so people above the age of 15, but also 18+ as you have to be over 18 to vote politically and be involved in publics so that has a factor. Action films normally attract a mature audience as most contain strong language and violence scenes.
Thriller
The target audience of thrillers tends to be fairly similar to horror as the films follow very similar conventions (low key lighting, dark plots, blood and guts etc) therefore just like horror films, thriller films tend to attract audiences of 15-25 with films falling either under the 15 or 18 certificate ratings. To gain a wider target audience and improve profits most thriller films (like horror films) tend to very rarely have an 18 certificate as you can still get just the right amount of violence and blood whilst keeping the film at a 15 certificate and therefore not blocking out over a quarter of your potential audience. Having said that a lot of the target audiences for Psychological thrillers are 18+ as they involve a lot of violence and psychological issues which would be disturbing for younger viewers, this could cause nightmares for younger viewers and cause them to be very scared for a longer period of time. Also Political Thrillers appeal to an older target audience of both genders, as it has more political interest which stereotypically interest the older generation rather than the younger generation. 15+ is usually the age rating so people above the age of 15, but also 18+ as you have to be over 18 to vote politically and be involved in publics so that has a factor. Action films normally attract a mature audience as most contain strong language and violence scenes.
Similarly to horror films audiences of thriller films tend to be groups of friends however there are key groups of audiences who often see thriller movies. Couples who are either on a first date or have been in a relationship for a long time but not married commonly go and see horror films. The comfort that is needed after a horror film is perfect to make a first date successful, also it's a good conversation starter after the film and therefore popular conversation choice.
One variation from horror films would probably be the gender who go see the film, horror films tend to attract predominantly male audiences whereas thriller films attract a more even ratio of men and woman. Research that shows that females are more attracted to psychological thrillers because they enjoy the story behind the events that take place in the movie, it has also been shown females like the intellectual side of strange psychologically challenging behaviour that features in psychological thriller. Action Thrillers tend to be most watched by males who like high intense action but also some women as most actors are male so if the female is attracted to the male character that could influence them to watch a action thriller and also vice versa if a male finds a particular female character in the film attractive. With Spy Thrillers the protagonist is usually a male which sets a role model for the male audiences, showing Maslow’s theory of Self Actualization from Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
Overall the general demographic for an audience watching a thriller movie is an even split between men and woman and attracts both young and old alike but tends to lean more towards the older viewers as it tends to have more complex plots and younger people may prefer horror as they seek cheap thrills.
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