Internet horror has often been treated as disposable material. ‘Backrooms’ has proved otherwise.
The horror film directed by YouTuber Kane Parsons has crossed $400 million USD at the global box office, becoming the highest-grossing film in A24’s history. It has overtaken ‘Marty Supreme’, which grossed $192 million.
Produced for $10 million USD, ‘Backrooms’ has reached $400.09 million USD worldwide. The total includes $197.5 million USD in domestic takings and $202.57 million USD internationally.
‘Backrooms’ opened in the US on May 29, 2026. Its $81 million USD domestic opening weekend was A24’s largest ever.
IMDb ranks ‘Backrooms’ 10th on its list of the highest-grossing horror films of all time.
The film stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve and Mark Duplass. Its plot follows a furniture store operator who finds a sprawling maze of liminal rooms beneath the store’s basement.
The idea began with a 4chan thread on the /x/ board on May 12, 2019. It later developed into a creepypasta, a form of online horror fiction shared and expanded through internet posts.
Parsons began uploading a YouTube series called ‘Backrooms’ on January 7, 2022. The feature maintains what has been described as “strict continuity” with that web series.
Parsons was 19 years old while the film was shot and was 20 when it was released. He became the youngest director in box office history to debut a film at No. 1.
Danny Vermette, the production designer, built more than 30,000 square feet of physical Backrooms sets across four sound stages. The production used 37,000 square feet of wallpaper and 29,000 square feet of carpeting.
Will Soodik wrote the screenplay after replacing Roberto Patino during development. The producers include James Wan, Shawn Levy, Dan Levine, Peter Chernin, Jenno Topping and Osgood Perkins.
The film premiered in Japan on September 4, 2026. International screenings used the 126-minute “Everything Must Go Edition”, comprising a 110-minute main feature and 16 minutes of special footage.
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