 A cult film is any film that has a cult following , although the term is not easily defined and can be applied to a wide variety of films . The definition is occasionally expanded to exclude films that have been released by major studios or have big budgets , try specifically to become cult films , or become accepted by mainstream audiences and critics . Cult films are defined by audience reaction as much as they are content . This may take the form of elaborate and ritualized audience participation , film festivals , or cosplay . Over time , the definition has become more vague and inclusive as it drifts away from earlier , stricter views . Increasing use of the term by mainstream publications has resulted in controversy , as cinephiles argue that the term has become meaningless or " elastic , a catchall for anything slightly maverick or strange " . Academic Mark Shiel has criticized the term itself as being a weak concept , reliant on subjectivity ; different groups can interpret films in their own terms . According to feminist scholar Joanne Hollows , this subjectivity causes films with strong female cult followings to be perceived as too mainstream and not transgressive enough to qualify as a cult film . Academic Mike Chopra ‑ Gant says that cult films become decontextualized when studied as a group , and Shiel criticizes this recontextualization as cultural commodification . 
