The modern concept of the snuff film was popularized by a 1970s marketing hoax.

While the term 'snuff' was first used in a literary context by Ed Sanders in his 1971 book on the Manson Family, the cultural concept of the snuff movie was solidified by the 1976 film 'Snuff'. Originally filmed in Argentina as a low-budget horror movie titled 'Slaughter' by Michael and Roberta Findlay, the film was a commercial failure. Distributor Allan Shackleton bought the film, tacked on a crude, uncredited ending depicting a mock 'behind-the-scenes' murder of a crew member, and rebranded it as 'Snuff', claiming it showed an actual murder. The deliberate fueling of controversy—including hiring fake protesters to picket theaters—successfully generated massive public outrage and box office success, cementing the concept of the snuff film in the public consciousness.