Title: YouTube Creators Dominate Box Office with Top-Tier Horror Films

The pipeline connecting YouTube creators to major horror cinema is proving its strength this weekend. Kane Parsons’ feature film, “Backrooms,” has seized the number one spot at the domestic box office, with projections indicating it will earn an estimated $81 million. This figure marks a historic milestone for indie distributor A24, shattering its previous opening-weekend record of $25.7 million set by “Civil War.” The movie expands upon Parsons’ popular YouTube series, which features unsettling found footage of a strange, physics-defying office space originally inspired by a 4chan thread.

Meanwhile, the film in second place, “Obsession,” is achieving a rare cinematic feat. While its projected weekend haul of $26.4 million is lower than “Backrooms,” the movie is defying industry norms by growing in popularity. Typically, wide-release films see their revenue drop by 50% to 70% in their second weekend. For comparison, last year’s “Sinners” was hailed as a massive word-of-mouth hit because it declined by less than 5%. It is exceptionally uncommon for a film to increase its earnings from one weekend to the next, except during the holiday season. According to The Hollywood Reporter, “Obsession” is the first movie since 1982 to experience growth during both its second and third weekends. The film, which centers on a romantic desire that turns into a nightmare, is directed by Curry Barker. Barker, 26, first gained recognition for his YouTube work, which peaked with the 2024 found-footage horror film “Milk & Serial.” He has already filmed his subsequent project and is scheduled to direct a remake of “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”

These two releases follow the unexpected success of “Iron Lung,” a video game adaptation released earlier this year. Directed by Mark Fischbach, widely known as Markiplier, the film earned nearly $41 million domestically.

In a New York Times piece regarding the recent surge of YouTubers transitioning to filmmaking, Alex DelVecchio, general manager of Rutgers Cinema, observed that many creators attempt the leap to mainstream cinema but fail. He suggests that what distinguishes Parsons (20), Barker, and Fischbach is their longevity. “At this point, some of them have been making videos for a very long time, and that’s how you develop a loyal audience that will follow you,” DelVecchio explained.

Both horror films outperformed the franchise’s latest installment, “The Mandalorian and Grogu,” which is expected to gross $24 million this weekend. It marks the first Star Wars theatrical release in seven years.

On a personal note, while I have yet to see “Backrooms” (hopefully tomorrow), I have viewed “Obsession.” I can confirm it delivers on its promises; I spent much of the second half covering my eyes with my fingers and may have even screamed a few times.

This article was originally published on May 30 and has been updated with the latest box office figures.

Source: TechCrunch Generated at: 2026-05-31 18:34:58 UTC