A viral online horror phenomenon has made a historic leap to the big screen, shattering long-held box office expectations and cementing a new milestone for young filmmakers across the industry. Adapted from the wildly popular YouTube horror series that launched a global internet cultural trend, A24’s *Backrooms* delivered a staggering $81.5 million opening weekend across North America, breaking multiple industry records in its debut, U.S. entertainment outlets confirmed over the weekend.
Helmed by 20-year-old writer-director Kane Parsons, who first created the *Backrooms* web series as a teen creator, the film’s opening haul marks the largest domestic debut ever for an original standalone horror production, according to entertainment industry trade publication Variety. The opening weekend gross also more than doubles the previous record for the biggest domestic opening in independent studio A24’s history.
Beyond its box office achievements, the feature film debut makes Parsons the youngest director ever to launch a first feature at the number one spot on the North American box office charts. Starring Academy Award nominees Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve, the big-screen adaptation carries forward the eerie, unsettling core of the original web series: Ejiofor stars as a small furniture shop owner who stumbles upon a hidden, labyrinthine, otherworldly complex lurking beneath his store. When he disappears without a trace, his therapist, played by Reinsve, ventures into the uncanny, liminal space to track him down.
The *Backrooms* franchise originated in 2022 as a viral internet project that grew out of the “creepypasta” cultural phenomenon – a genre of short, shareable horror stories that are reposted, reworked, and expanded by online communities, with users adding new lore ranging from monstrous entities to hidden interdimensional spaces to the core narrative.
In a surprising turn, the second spot on the North American box office charts also went to a horror feature: Focus Features’ *Obsession*, which has built steady momentum through strong critical acclaim and word-of-mouth from audiences in its first three weeks of release. Directed by 26-year-old Curry Baker, the film added $26.4 million in domestic ticket sales in its fourth weekend, bringing its estimated global total to nearly $150 million on a production budget of less than $1 million. Lead actress Inde Navarrette has earned widespread praise for her performance as a young woman who becomes dangerously obsessed with a man, played by Michael Johnston, after he makes a magical wish for her affection.
Disney’s big-screen expansion of its hit sci-fi franchise, *Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu*, rounded out the top three in its second weekend, plummeting nearly 70 percent in ticket sales from its opening to take in $25 million. The feature marks the first theatrical Star Wars release since 2019’s *Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker*, and brings the popular streaming series to the big screen for the first time.
Lionsgate’s Michael Jackson biopic *Michael* held its spot in the top five for its sixth consecutive weekend, adding $11.7 million in domestic sales. Directed by Antoine Fuqua and starring Jaafar Jackson, the late pop icon’s nephew, the biopic has now grossed $340 million domestically and more than $845 million globally, per box office tracker Exhibitor Relations.
Closing out the top five was Sony’s new comedy *The Breadwinner*, which opened to $7.5 million in its first weekend. The film stars popular American stand-up comedian Nate Bargatze, a top-grossing live performer known for his deadpan, family-focused comedy, as a stay-at-home dad forced to manage childcare alone while his wife travels for work.
The remainder of the weekend’s top 10 highest-grossing films were: *The Devil Wears Prada 2* ($5.9 million), *Pressure* ($5.8 million), *The Sheep Detective* ($4.6 million), *Passenger* ($2.6 million), and *Mortal Kombat II* ($2 million).