8. 28 Days Later
Let it be known that you don't always need a fancy gimmick to sell a film, especially if it's one that Stephen King just happens to enjoy. Danny Boyle's 2002 masterpiece had such a fan in Stephen King that he once bought out a whole showing at a theater he was visiting, just so he could pass out the tickets to people and get them on board. This was after already positive word of mouth was filtering back to America from the film's native England, which lead to some film festival activity and ultimately a successful Summer release courtesy of Fox Searchlight. On top of Mr. King's generous screening gesture, there were several advanced screenings in select markets which dared audiences to "Wear Red...See What Happens", as well as motion comic videos that depicted the world during The Infection that lead up to the film's events. For a film that burst onto the horror scene with the promise of accelerated zombie-like creatures, and had conveyed such promises in trailers that promised a "no one is safe" attitude, this dare was not to be taken lightly. The fact that the film was so well received in its native land helped make it an easier sell Stateside, but without Fox Searchlight's indie movie treatment of a true horror flick, the film probably wouldn't have been as successful as it was. (Though it helped that the trailer was attached to X2: X-Men United that same Summer.)