YouTuber box office boom: ‘Backrooms’ and ‘Obsession’ draw Gen Z to
theaters
[June 01, 2026]
By LINDSEY BAHR
Young audiences turned out in droves to movie theaters around the
country this weekend. It wasn’t for the big budget “Star Wars” movie,
“The Mandalorian and Grogu, ” which fell sharply in its second weekend,
however, but for a small budget horror from a 20-year-old first-time
filmmaker that began on the internet.
“Backrooms,” released by A24 in 3,442 locations in the U.S. and Canada,
made an astonishing $81.5 million in its first three days in theaters,
according to studio estimates on Sunday. That’s just a few hundred
thousand dollars shy of what “The Mandalorian and Grogu” earned in its
first three days last weekend; And “Backrooms,” which was directed and
co-written by YouTube creator Kane Parsons, cost only $10 million to
produce.
The wild success of “Backrooms” didn’t even hurt “Obsession,” which is
also the directorial debut of a YouTuber, Curry Barker, who is only 26.
Three weekends in, “Obsession,” a movie that cost less than $1 million
to make, still hasn’t dropped below its opening weekend earnings. This
weekend, it was up 10% with another $26.4 million for a second-place
finish, leaving Star Wars, the legacy franchise movie from the veteran
filmmaker and the Walt Disney Studios, in third with $25 million.
YouTube might not be the death of movie theaters after all. If this
weekend is any indication, it could be the industry’s new great hope.
This is a weekend where theaters also hosted the debuts of “The
Breadwinner,” a PG-rated family comedy starring the popular comedian
Nate Bargatze, and “Pressure,” a solid World War II drama about the
tense 72 hours before D-Day with Oscar-winner Brendan Fraser. But it was
the 20-something YouTubers that drew the most crowds. And both
“Backrooms” and “Obsession” were produced by Blumhouse-Atomic Monster.
Abhijay Prakash, the president of Blumhouse-Atomic Monster said that the
weekend is both staggering and validation of their business, which has
from the beginning championed original horror movies that appeal to
younger audiences, and generated over $10 billion in box office to date.
He noted that they’ve made a point of looking for up and coming talent
on YouTube and, knowing how Hollywood works, this weekend likely inspire
a wave of copycats. But beyond that, he’s encouraged by the fact that
the young creators who’ve already had enormous success online still
value the cultural currency of theatrical movies.
“It’s a great sign of relevance for us,” Prakash said. “With some
distance, we’ll probably look back at this as a real turning point.”
“Backrooms” started as a creepypasta — an internet-generated urban
legend — before Parsons turned the concept, about a never-ending expanse
of dull, depressing rooms and hallways, into a viral web series, which
he made with the help of the open-source 3D graphics software Blender.
It caught the attention of James Wan and Shawn Levy’s production
companies who were interested in taking it to the next level; Soon a
movie was in development with Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve
starring.
It wasn’t just a domestic hit either; Including international showings,
“Backrooms” has already made $118 million globally. A24 said Parsons is
now the youngest director to have a No. 1 film globally. It’s also a
record opening for the studio, whose previous high-water mark was “Civil
War,” which opened to $25.5 million in 2024.
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This image released by A24 shows Chiwetel Ejiofor in a scene from
"Backrooms." (A24 via AP)
 The R-rated film was well-reviewed
by critics and drew a young and diverse crowd to theaters. According
to exit polls, 86% of the audience was under 35, more than half were
under 25 and 44% were under 21. Many attended in groups and there
were reports of sold-out shows, packed theaters and repeat viewings.
Audiences gave it a less-than-stellar B- CinemaScore, however.
But the buzz is still creating a frenzy of all
ages, even teenagers, wanting to see “Backrooms.” Some theaters have
even posted employees outside of the screens to make sure that
anyone under 21 is accompanied by an adult. The same is true for the
R-rated “Obsession," which has now made $104.7 million in North
America, and is now Focus Features' highest grossing domestic
release.
Luis Olloqui, the CEO of Cinépolis USA, which operates 26 theaters
across the country — most of which are dine-in — said they’ve seen
sellouts at many of their locations for both movies.
“We were a little worried that they would be competing for the same
audience. It’s not the case,” Olloqui said. “It shows that when we
have the right content, people from all ages are willing to go to
the theater.”
“The Mandalorian and Grogu,” meanwhile, fell around 69% from its
opening last weekend. The movie has now made $246.6 million
globally.
“Michael” landed in fourth place with $11.7 million in its sixth
weekend — the musical biopic has made $339.9 million domestically to
date. “The Breadwinner,” released by Sony, rounded out the top five
with an estimated $7.5 million. ”Pressure" opened in seventh place
with $5.8 million.
Outside of the top 10 was the heist-romance “Tuner,” which expanded
to 452 theaters in its second weekend, earning a solid $1.7 million.
“Everyone’s asking what’s the next big thing in Hollywood for
movies, and what can bring people back to the movie theater? And
this may be it,” said Paul Dergarabedian, the head of marketplace
trends for Comscore.
Top 10 movies by domestic box office
With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list factors
in estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and
Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:
1. “Backrooms,” $81.5 million.
2. “Obsession,” $26.4 million.
3. “Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu,” $25 million.
4. “Michael,” $11.7 million.
5. “The Breadwinner,” $7.5 million.
6. “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” $5.9 million.
7. “Pressure,” $5.8 million.
8. “The Sheep Detectives,” $4.6 million.
9. “Passenger,” $2.6 million.
10. “Mortal Kombat II,” $2 million.
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