How ‘Obsession,’ shot for less than $1 million, became a $400 million sensation at the box office

The horror hit ‘Obsession’ just hit a big number at the box office. It has earned $403 million around the world. That includes $245 million in North America and $157 million overseas. The film has been in theaters for two months now.

This movie cost only $750,000 to make. Focus Features picked it up for $14 million at last year’s Toronto Film Festival. That deal has paid off many times over. ‘Obsession’ is now the most profitable film festival purchase ever made. It beat out “The Blair Witch Project” for that title.

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Who made it

Curry Barker wrote and directed the film. He is a YouTube creator making his first movie. The story follows a young man named Bear, played by Michael Johnston. He makes a dark deal to win over his crush Nikki, played by Inde Navarrette. Fans have called it a modern twist on old-school horror romance.

Steady growth, not a quick drop

Most horror films fade fast. This one didn’t. It opened with $17 million in North America back in May. Then something unusual happened. Ticket sales kept climbing. Four weekends in a row beat the opening numbers. That almost never happens in this genre.

Even over the July 4th weekend, the film stayed strong. It made $5.3 million domestically and $12 million internationally during the holiday stretch.

‘Obsession’ recently launched on digital platforms. But it didn’t slow down in theaters. The film kept earning more than $1 million a day for 48 straight days in North America. That streak ties it with the Michael Jackson biopic “Michael” for one of the longest post-pandemic runs at the box office.

Beating bigger films

The film has now passed “Sinners,” the Ryan Coogler-directed horror movie starring Michael B. Jordan. That film made $370 million worldwide. ‘Obsession’ also passed other horror giants like “A Quiet Place,” “Alien: Romulus,” and “The Nun.” It now sits among the top-earning horror films of all time.

Barker isn’t alone in this trend. Another YouTube creator, Kane Parsons, directed a horror film called “Backrooms” for A24. That movie has made $347 million worldwide so far. Together, these two films are proving something studios didn’t expect. Young audiences raised on YouTube and TikTok still want to go to theaters.

Earlier this year, YouTuber Markiplier also found success with his self-funded horror film “Iron Lung.” It made $50 million on a budget of just $3 million.