If the stalker thriller “Obsessed,” which opens on Friday, tops the box office, Clinton R. Culpepper will cement his reputation as Hollywood’s king of the schlockbuster.

The president of Screen Gems, a unit of Sony Pictures Entertainment, Mr. Culpepper, 53, has quietly helped build the film industry’s most consistently successful manufacturer of genre films. Genre films are, loosely speaking, low-cost movies that appeal to a specific audience , whether for horror, science fiction, rude laughs or spiritual inspiration , by fulfilling expectations more than challenging them.

Once the province of third-tier operators who often sent them straight to video, genre movies have become increasingly important financially, tapping niche audiences whose money would otherwise be left on the table. This year, Screen Gems is poised to release five films, a quarter of Sony’s schedule

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