Overview
- Backrooms opened to about $81.4–81.5 million in North America and roughly $118 million worldwide over its first weekend, giving A24 its biggest-ever opening.
- The film was directed by 20-year-old Kane Parsons and was made on a reported ~$10 million budget, producing immediate profitability for the studio and its financiers.
- Opening audiences skewed very young, polls show the majority of ticket buyers were under 35, while measured reception was mixed with a B- CinemaScore and roughly 74% on Rotten Tomatoes, raising frontloading concerns.
- Focus Features’ Obsession posted continued weekend growth—another ~$26.4 million in its third frame—while Disney/Lucasfilm’s The Mandalorian and Grogu fell about 69–70% in its second weekend.
- Industry observers say the weekend reinforces a YouTube-to-Hollywood pipeline and is likely to prompt studios to rethink acquisition and development strategies for low-cost creator-driven projects and fast-follow sequels.