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Body horror The Substance may have proven an Oscar-winning hit in 2024, but legendary genre director John Carpenter doesn't count himself among its many fans.
During a panel at FAN EXPO Philadelphia recently, the Halloween helmer asked an attendee in the audience what they thought of The Substance. "I loved it, I LOVED it," they replied enthusiastically, before Carpenter clapped back, "Well, I didn't."
Carpenter on The Substance pic.twitter.com/ERXhRnoEC2October 26, 2025
Written and directed by French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat, The Substance follows Elisabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore), the host of a hit aerobics show who gets fired on her birthday. Turns out, the network is looking to bring in a less mature audience – and a freshly turned 50 year old doesn't fit with the new direction the brand is taking. Dejected, Elisabeth doesn't think twice when she's approached by a mysterious scientist and offered their lab's latest experiment: a chemical that is said to revert the user back to their "younger, more beautiful, more perfect" selves. But she soon finds out that the gooey deal comes with terrible consequences.
At the Oscars 2025, it was nominated in five categories, including Best Actress and Best Picture. It wound up winning the award for Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling.
As if Carpenter giving it a public bashing isn't awkward enough, Fargeat actually namedropped him in the lead-up to The Substance's release, telling Australian publication HEAVY that she was heavily influenced by The Thing. In another interview with Inverse, she said: "There is David Cronenberg, there is John Carpenter… When I write, I welcome the homage I want to make to those filmmakers that I love and admire."
For more, check out our picks of the best shows on Netflix or our breakdown of the most exciting upcoming horror movies heading our way.
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