Why Offseason's Jocelin Donahue Likes Starring In Horror Films - Exclusive

For fans, horror films can offer an escape — a sense of the unknown in a controlled environment, where dim lights, a bucket of popcorn, and edge-of-your-seat anticipation all collide to create a thrilling experience. It's a tradition that goes all the way back to the beginning of cinema, when films like "Nosferatu" and "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" enthralled audiences. But have you ever wondered how the actors on the other side of the screen feel about working in such a genre?

In an exclusive interview with Nicki Swift, horror star Jocelin Donahue gave us some insight into what makes scary movies appealing to actors. Having appeared in numerous terrifying tales, such as "The House of the Devil," "Doctor Sleep," and "Insidious: Chapter 2," Donahue is no stranger to onscreen scares. Her latest project, "Offseason," which is now in theaters and available on VOD and Digital, follows a woman who stumbles upon a sinister mystery unfolding on a remote offshore island where her late mother was buried against her will.

It's quite the horror-filled career — and here's why Donahue likes starring in scary movies so much.

With an impressive résumé of independent horror films under her belt dating back to 2008, Donahue can be considered an authority on the subject. And when asked what her all-time favorite scary movie is, she rattles off a list of both old and new classics. "I used to say 'The Shining' was my favorite horror film until I started seeing [more films]," she says. "Now I feel I know more. I still love 'The Shining,' that's the ultimate. But I also love 'Rosemary's Baby' and 'Repulsion' and that trilogy. More recently, I loved 'Ex Machina' and 'Annihilation,' Alex Garland's two movies in the genre ... I feel I have different ones for different subgenres."

As for why starring in such ominous films is so alluring for her as an actor, Donahue says, "Horror is great for actors to work in because we get to do so much. We get to play the drama and the emotion, sometimes there's comedy and lightness, but you also get to have these really high-stakes, life or death scenarios. You get to do a lot."

"The genre in general can explore so many different things because anything can be scary," she added. "Your intimate relationships can be scary, or your existential dread is scary, or real-life violence ... There's just so much. I feel like horror encompasses all genres."

Donahue's latest horror film, "Offseason," is now in theaters and available on VOD and Digital.