A new horror classic has been born, and once again, we have a story of relative unknowns striking it rich, making a fantastic film on a tiny budget that is paying off handsomely. The movie is Obsession, and it’s already one of the biggest success stories of the year.
Obsession, written and directed by former YouTuber Curry Barker, starring relative unknowns Inde Navarrette and Michael Johnston, was reportedly made for a budget of just $750,000 to $1 million, almost unheard of in today’s Hollywood landscape. Word of mouth began to spread amid exceptionally positive reviews (double 94% Rotten Tomatoes scores from critics and audiences), and it just opened with $21 million globally, $16 million in the US for its first weekend.
The movie follows in the footsteps of other YouTubers-turned-horror directors like Markiplier, bringing in $50 million from his film Iron Lung on a $3-4 million budget. Danny and Michael Philippou’s Talk to Me took in $92 million on its $4.5 million budget. Though neither of those are $750,000-$1 million, and neither created actual awards buzz for their stars, which is the case when Inde Navarrette, who has given possibly one of the best horror performances…ever. Most viewers would agree that is not an exaggeration.
Navarrette plays Nikki, a girl Johnston’s Bear has a crush on. But when he’s convinced the feelings aren’t mutual, he uses a mysterious “One Wish Willow” toy to wish that she “loved him more than anyone in the world.” You might imagine how such wording might produce…problematic results, and Navarrette goes on to play everything from an overbearing romantic to an utter psychopath over the course of the film, often switching between those on the spot.
These earnings on that budget, while amazing, are still not in all-time territory, which we saw with the likes of Paranormal Activity, which cost $15,000 and made $193 million worldwide. And of course, the original success story, 1999’s The Blair Witch Project, had a budget of roughly $60 and earned $249 million. Even with extra costs added for post-production, the multiples were out of this world and have practically never been replicated at that scale.
Both of those films opened with tiny numbers and limited distribution, but spread virally to earn those enormous hauls. Obsession opened in 2,600 US theaters, and it’s only been a few days, so we don’t know exactly how word of mouth may spread. That $16.1 million had it come in third place this weekend, but that’s only behind the likes of megablockbusters Michael and The Devil Wears Prada 2, which earned $18 million, and Obsession almost edged past it.
Director Curry Barker has two more horror films coming, one comedy and one original take on Texas Chainsaw Massacre. He’s also talked about ideas for Obsession sequels and even an anthology series where different kinds of wishes and their unforeseen effects are explored. For now, we’ll track the original film, but it could not be off to a better start, both critically, with audiences, and at the box office.
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