The YouTube-to-prestige-horror pipeline is looking very strong this weekend, as two feature films directed by YouTubers are dominating box offices.
Leading the charge is “Backrooms,” a film that expands on Kane Parsons’ eerie found footage videos. Directed by Parsons himself, it's set to bring in an estimated $81 million at the domestic box office this weekend alone – more than A24’s previous record holder, “Civil War.”
Coming in second is “Obsession,” a horror film about a romantic wish gone wrong. Despite making only $26.4 million over its first two weekends, it's set to grow by another 10% this weekend – something unheard of since 1982.
Both films are the work of YouTubers who have made the leap to mainstream filmmaking. Curry Barker, whose YouTube career culminated in “Milk & Serial,” is currently shooting his next film and is set to remake “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”
The success of these films follows the surprise success of “Iron Lung,” a video game adaptation released earlier this year, directed by Mark Fischbach. This article was first published on May 30.
