A broader framework for the horror comedy: Alternation, conflation and multiple genre hybridities.

This article examines the tonal construction and genre hybridity of horror comedy films, arguing for a broader analytical framework that integrates both horror studies and humour studies to account for the diverse ways these films blend horror and comedy. It critiques existing models that focus narrowly on tonal alternation—rapid shifts between horror and humour—and tonal conflation—simultaneous operation of both tones—by analyzing three case studies from different decades: *The Gore Gore Girls* (1972), *Society* (1989), and *All My Friends Hate Me* (2021). These films illustrate varying hybridities, from ambivalent gore and social satire to cringe comedy, revealing how horror comedy films engage with socio-political themes such as class, privilege, and social anxiety. The article concludes that a more nuanced, multi-framework approach is necessary to understand the subgenre’s complexity, longevity, and the fluidity of its tonal and generic boundaries.