10 Fan Theories That Actually Improve Classic Horror Films

The Cabin In The Woods brilliantly satirises horror tropes, but while the meta aspects of the movie are obvious, it goes even further than just what's on the surface.

It's explained that every year, rituals are held in order to appease The Ancient Ones. These rituals have to involve youth, and they have to follow a formula by which the virgin is the last to die. If any part of the formula isn't fulfilled, the gods will destroy the world. This is obviously an explanation for why horror movies are so generic, but one interpretation is that the The Ancient Ones are quite literally the audience watching the film.

After all, horror fans go to movies expecting a certain thing, and they'll be pissed if they don't get it. The Director says the sun is coming up in eight minutes, and if Marty and Dana are alive to see it, the world will end. In this scene, there are eight minutes left in the movie, at which point the lights in the movie theater (i.e. the sun) will come up. When Hadley and Sitterson have Jules remove her shirt, Hadley says, "we're not the only ones watching." Everything they do is to appease you, the viewer who came to a movie called The Cabin In The Woods expecting blood, gore, and boobs.