A24 has a new box office king, and it arrived from one of the internet’s most unexpected corners. Backrooms, the feature adaptation of Kane Parsons’ viral YouTube horror phenomenon, has exploded out of the gate with a debut that has completely rewritten the studio’s record books. What started as a creepy online series has now become a full-blown theatrical event, proving once again that audiences are hungry for fresh horror stories that don’t come from established franchises.
The film’s opening numbers have shocked industry observers. After earning a huge $38 million on Friday alone, Backrooms is now heading toward an estimated $85 million to $90 million domestic opening weekend. That performance easily surpasses the previous A24 record held by Civil War, which debuted with $25.5 million. For a studio known more for prestige filmmaking and indie hits than blockbuster launches, the result marks a major moment in its history.
Internet Horror Finds Mainstream Success
Directed by Kane Parsons, Backrooms transforms the unsettling online myth into a larger cinematic experience. The story follows a small-town furniture store owner who unexpectedly discovers a gateway to a mysterious alternate dimension hidden within his showroom. As strange events begin unfolding, reality itself starts to feel unstable, drawing him deeper into a terrifying world that shouldn’t exist.
The film boasts an impressive cast led by Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve and Mark Duplass. Behind the scenes, notable names including James Wan, Shawn Levy and Osgood Perkins helped produce the project. The combination of internet-born storytelling and experienced genre talent appears to have created exactly the kind of horror event audiences were looking for.
The success is also another sign that unconventional horror concepts are increasingly finding mainstream acceptance. In recent years, original horror films have consistently outperformed expectations, and Backrooms now joins that growing list of surprise successes that began as niche concepts before reaching wider audiences.
Obsession Stays Strong While Other New Releases Struggle
While Backrooms dominated headlines, another horror film continued its remarkable run. Obsession delivered another strong weekend, earning $8.1 million on Friday and tracking toward roughly $28 million for the frame. The film’s performance is particularly impressive because it is actually showing growth compared to the previous weekend, something rarely seen for horror releases after opening.
Elsewhere, the family comedy The Breadwinner, starring Nate Bargatze, posted a modest debut and is expected to finish the weekend with around $7.5 million. Meanwhile, the World War II drama Pressure, featuring Brendan Fraser as Dwight Eisenhower, is looking at a quieter launch with approximately $5.4 million.
The weekend also brought disappointing news for The Mandalorian and Grogu. After a promising start, the latest entry in the Star Wars universe suffered a steep second-weekend decline, raising questions about its long-term box office strength. In contrast, Lionsgate’s Michael continued its successful run and is on track to push its domestic total beyond $340 million.
For A24, however, the story of the weekend belongs entirely to Backrooms. The film has not only delivered the studio’s biggest opening ever but has also shown that internet-created horror properties can compete with traditional Hollywood franchises when given the right big-screen treatment.
