The horror film “Obsession” has crossed $403 million at the worldwide box office on a production budget of just $750,000, according to Forbes. The figures were confirmed as of the weekend of July 5, 2026.
Director Curry Barker, a 26-year-old from Mobile, Alabama who learned his craft on YouTube, made the film as his feature debut. He now sits at the center of one of the year’s biggest theatrical stories, with a sequel, a Blumhouse feature, and a chainsaw reboot on his slate.
The $403 Million Weekend in Context
“Obsession” opened in theaters on May 15, 2026, and kept climbing long after industry models said it should have stopped. The Focus Features records article traces the run from the wide release through the eighth weekend. Focus Features had paid about $15 million to acquire the film at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2025 and had to postpone its video-on-demand release because the theatrical run would not slow down. The film unseated Bruce Lee’s 1973 classic Enter the Dragon to become the highest-grossing movie of all time among films produced for under $1 million, per Hypebeast. It also became the highest-grossing release in the 24-year history of Focus Features and the highest-grossing film festival acquisition of all time.
The eighth weekend in theaters added another $5.3 million from 2,640 North American screens and topped three streaming charts in the U.S. within five days of its premium video-on-demand launch on June 30, per Forbes. Those platforms were Apple TV, Fandango at Home, and Prime Video. Five days after the streaming debut, theater ticket sales were still moving.
The pattern broke what Hollywood usually sees from a microbudget release. Where contemporary horror films drop 50 to 60 percent in their second frame, “Obsession” registered back-to-back weekend increases in its second and third weeks, per Hypebeast. Its fourth weekend in theaters saw the film drop just 7 percent and set a record for the best fourth-weekend hold ever for a horror film. Its 25th day of release pulled in $4.2 million on a discount Monday, out-grossing what Avengers: Endgame and Star Wars: The Force Awakens made on their respective 25th days in theaters.
- Opening weekend (domestic): $17.1 million from 3,016 theaters on May 15, 2026
- Domestic gross: $245.3 million
- International gross: $157.7 million
- Acquisition price (TIFF 2025): about $15 million
- PVOD launch: June 30, 2026
From YouTube Sketches to a $15 Million Acquisition
Barker built his film school of the internet the hard way. He grew up in Mobile, Alabama, moved to Los Angeles at 18, and enrolled in film school for a year, where he met Cooper Tomlinson, who would become a co-star and producer on “Obsession.” After school, the two cut their own path through YouTube and TikTok with a comedy sketch series called “That’s a Bad Idea.”
The professional breakthrough arrived through a found-footage horror called “Milk & Serial,” made for $800 and uploaded to YouTube after it failed to secure distribution. It went viral and landed Barker an agent. In 2023, Barker wrote and directed a short called “The Chair,” which attracted James Harris of Tea Shop Productions. Harris approached Barker about extending “The Chair” into a feature, but Barker instead pitched a different film, “Obsession,” built around a similar unease with the supernatural.
“Obsession” was selected to premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2025, giving it a stage few microbudget horror films ever reach. After a bidding war, Focus Features chairman Peter Kujawski closed a deal for about $15 million, per Forbes. The film was released wide on May 15, 2026, with Tomlinson, Megan Lawless, and Andy Richter joining leads Michael Johnston and Inde Navarrette in the cast. The Focus Features film page for Obsession is now promoting the theatrical run alongside the streaming release.
Tomlinson and Barker have stayed locked together since the film school meeting. The pair co-founded their YouTube and TikTok sketch series before pivoting to horror. Tomlinson co-stars in “Obsession” and produced it with Barker and Harris.
What Happens in “Obsession”
The story is built around a single object: a novelty toy called a One Wish Willow. Bear Bailey, a young man working at a music store, uses the One Wish Willow to wish that his crush Nikki loves him more than anyone in the world. The wish works, and the consequences arrive disturbingly well. The premise is loosely inspired by an old “Simpsons” Halloween episode.
The cast extends beyond Johnston and Navarrette. Tomlinson plays Ian, Lawless plays Sarah, and Richter appears in a supporting role. The director’s sensibility shows through in tight framing, sudden silences, and a sense that the joke in the room has already turned on the joker. A sequel, Barker has said, would be easy: different wishes, different characters, different vices like greed or fame.
The Generation That Walked Back Into Theaters
Hollywood has spent two summers trying to figure out what to do with Gen Z moviegoers. “Obsession” is what it looks like when that generation organizes itself around a film. Repeat viewings and a subcultural fanbase kept the movie moving through its eighth weekend.
If there’s a lesson from “Obsession,” I think it’s about audiences. We have a generation that grew up online, approaches culture with enormous curiosity and playfulness, and is far less concerned with where a filmmaker comes from than whether the story connects.
Peter Kujawski, chairman of Focus Features, told the AP that the lesson of “Obsession” is about audiences. The pattern runs against the modern horror curve, where films drop 50 to 60 percent in their second weekend; “Obsession” registered back-to-back increases instead. Barker, who grew up in Mobile, sees the response as generational. “I get it because I think we’re a little tired of being at home. Our generation is the COVID generation,” he told the AP. “I was fortunate enough to have all four years of high school experience. My brother, Riley, lost two years of that. We’re sick of the phones.”
Focus Features postponed the video-on-demand release to give the theatrical run room to keep climbing. The studio is now planning its slate around online-native filmmakers. Barker’s next projects are already in production.
Two Microbudget Horror Hits Define the Summer
“Obsession” is not running alone. A24’s “Backrooms,” directed by 20-year-old Kane Parsons and released May 29 to 31, opened at $81.4 million against pre-release projections and has since earned $190.4 million domestic and $159.3 million internationally, for a global tally of $349.7 million, per Forbes. Two microbudget horror films built by YouTube-trained directors are now sitting among the top horror releases of the decade.
Parsons, who publishes online as Kane Pixels, began posting at age 9 and built a video series around the creepypasta Backrooms meme. His A24 film stars Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve. An extended cut released the same weekend, “Backrooms: Everything Must Go Edition,” added 15 minutes of post-credits footage and made $3.3 million domestically for a No. 7 finish, per Forbes. “Obsession” took No. 6 the same weekend.
The two films share more than a release window. Both premiered to online fandoms before hitting theaters, and both have found audiences that show up week after week. Indies have historically struggled to find summer real estate against legacy franchises, but “Obsession” and “Backrooms” have made the case that a generation trained on TikTok will buy a ticket for an original horror property with the right hook. The A24 film page for Backrooms describes the project as a strange doorway appearing in the basement of a furniture showroom. Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group co-chair Mike De Luca, speaking at a conference last month, told WVTM that Hollywood is now in a dialogue with their audience from the word Go with these filmmakers.
The two films’ opening weekends ran on opposite trajectories. “Obsession” started small and grew week over week; “Backrooms” opened big at $81.4 million and held. Both films are now in the top horror releases of the year.
| Metric | “Obsession” | “Backrooms” |
|---|---|---|
| Director | Curry Barker, 26 | Kane Parsons, 20 |
| Distributor | Focus Features | A24 |
| Opening weekend (domestic) | $17.1 million | $81.4 million |
| Source of fandom | YouTube sketch series | YouTube “Kane Pixels” |
Barker’s Next Three Films
Barker is no longer a discovery. He has already shot his next feature, “Anything But Ghosts,” a Blumhouse film starring Aaron Paul and Bryce Dallas Howard that is in post-production. A24 announced two months ago that he will write and direct a reboot of “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.” Barker has hinted at an “Obsession” sequel in interviews.
The industry is betting on the young filmmaker. Blumhouse’s Jason Blum said the directors are making edgy movies that are connecting in theaters in a crazy way. Focus Features chairman Kujawski said Barker is not working from an inherited playbook. Filmmakers including Ari Aster, Zach Cregger, and Steven Spielberg have reached out to compliment Barker on “Obsession.”
The tattoo bet Barker made with his manager and agent before the film’s release is still active. They originally agreed they would all get inked if the film crossed $20 million on opening weekend. The film opened at $17.1 million and missed the bet, so they raised the threshold to $300 million. The film has cleared that mark, and the trio is now preparing to honor the wager. Barker is now booked through A24 and Blumhouse for the foreseeable future.
- “Anything But Ghosts” (Blumhouse), starring Aaron Paul and Bryce Dallas Howard, currently in post-production
- “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” reboot (A24), announced two months ago
- An “Obsession” sequel (not yet officially announced; Barker has hinted at the concept)
Frequently Asked Questions
How much has the horror film “Obsession” made at the box office?
As of the weekend of July 5, 2026, “Obsession” had earned $403 million worldwide, including $245.3 million domestic and $157.7 million international, per Forbes.
Who is Curry Barker?
Curry Barker is a 26-year-old filmmaker from Mobile, Alabama, who moved to Los Angeles at 18 to attend film school. He built a following on YouTube with sketch series and short horror films before writing and directing “Obsession” as his feature debut.
How did Focus Features acquire “Obsession”?
“Obsession” premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2025. After a bidding war, Focus Features acquired the film for about $15 million, per Forbes.
What is the One Wish Willow in “Obsession”?
The One Wish Willow is a novelty-store trinket at the center of the film’s plot. The protagonist Bear Bailey (Michael Johnston) uses it to wish that his crush Nikki (Inde Navarrette) loves him more than anyone in the world, with disturbing consequences.
Is there going to be a sequel to “Obsession”?
Barker has said a sequel is possible and would be relatively easy to make, following different characters making different wishes on One Wish Willows. No sequel has been officially announced.
What is Curry Barker working on next?
Barker has already shot “Anything But Ghosts,” a Blumhouse film starring Aaron Paul and Bryce Dallas Howard, which is in post-production. He is also set to write and direct a reboot of “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” for A24.
