YouTube Creators Dominate the Box Office as Their Films Lead Weekend Movie Charts

The path from YouTube creator to successful horror filmmaker appears stronger than ever this weekend.

Claiming the No. 1 position at the box office is “Backrooms,” a feature-length adaptation of Kane Parsons’ popular YouTube horror series. The project expands on the unsettling found-footage concept inspired by the internet-famous Backrooms phenomenon, depicting a strange office environment that seems to break the laws of reality.

Directed by Parsons, “Backrooms” is expected to generate approximately $81 million at the domestic box office during its opening weekend alone. The performance marks the largest debut ever for independent studio A24. The previous record belonged to “Civil War,” which earned $25.7 million during its first weekend in theatres.

The second-place film, “Obsession,” is achieving something even more remarkable. While its projected weekend earnings are around $26.4 million, the horror film has continued to grow week after week. After earning more in its second weekend than its first, the movie is now on pace to increase another 10% in its third weekend.

Such growth is highly unusual. Most wide-release films experience a decline of 50% to 70% during their second weekend. Even last year’s “Sinners,” widely praised for its strong word-of-mouth momentum, dropped less than 5%. According to The Hollywood Reporter, “Obsession” is the first film since 1982 to post gains in both its second and third weekends.

Like “Backrooms,” “Obsession” was directed by a filmmaker who first built an audience on YouTube. Director Curry Barker became known through his online filmmaking projects before releasing the found-footage horror movie “Milk & Serial” in 2024. Barker has already completed work on another film and is also set to direct a remake of “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”

The success of both movies follows the strong performance of “Iron Lung,” a video game adaptation released earlier this year. The film was directed by Mark Fischbach, better known online as Markiplier, and earned nearly $41 million at the domestic box office.

Speaking to The New York Times about the recent rise of YouTube creators entering filmmaking, Rutgers Cinema general manager Alex DelVecchio noted that many online personalities have attempted the transition to mainstream movies without achieving similar success. What separates Parsons, Barker, and Fischbach, he suggested, is their staying power and long-term connection with audiences.

“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 said.

Both “Backrooms” and “Obsession” outperformed the first Star Wars theatrical release in seven years, “The Mandalorian and Grogu,” which is projected to bring in $24 million this weekend.

As for “Obsession,” the film appears to be living up to the hype. Its intense second half delivers plenty of scares, making it a memorable experience for horror fans and helping explain the strong word-of-mouth that continues to drive audiences to theatres.