“Backrooms” is poised for breakout status at the box office. A24’s eerie horror film, from YouTube creator-turned-director Kane Parsons, should earn $40 million to $50 million in its opening weekend.
It’s a massive result, one that would shatter the record for A24’s biggest debut to date, a benchmark that belongs to Alex Garland’s 2024 thriller “Civil War” with $25.5 million. Many major releases from A24, including “Marty Supreme,” “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and “Heredity,” opened in just a few theaters to build buzz before launching nationwide. “Backrooms” is eschewing a platform release and will instead debut in 3,400 North American venues. With a production budget of around $10 million, “Backrooms” will reap major financial reward for Parsons, A24 and co-producer and co-financier Chernin Entertainment.
Parsons, 20, is the latest YouTuber who has turned his talents to the big screen. “Backrooms” follows the success of “Obsession,” a horror breakout from creator Curry Barker. That film has generated a remarkable $62 million in North America and $84.6 million worldwide after just two weekends of release. “Obsession” was produced for less than $1 million and then acquired by Focus for $15 million; it will easily become one of the year’s most profitable releases. Earlier this year, YouTuber Markiplier (whose real name is Mark Fischback) directed, self-financed and distributed the horror film “Iron Lung,” which earned a stellar $50 million against a $3 million budget.
