Obsession has achieved its goal and more: The 2025 horror film has shattered the record for the highest-grossing film made on a $750,000 US budget, with box office earnings exceeding $400 million US.
The American film, directed by 26-year-old Curry Barker, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival last September and hit theaters on May 15. Since then, it has consistently topped box office rankings, raking in over $245 million US domestically and more than $158 million US internationally, totaling just over $403 million US, as reported by Box Office Mojo. This achievement places it ahead of the 1973 Bruce Lee martial arts classic Enter the Dragon, which had a production cost of $850,000 US and has earned $400 million US across multiple re-releases. (Both figures are before inflation adjustment.)
Focus Features acquired the film after its festival screening for around $14 million US. It is now the most successful film in the company’s 24-year history and ranks among the most lucrative films ever produced.
The film’s success at the box office led Focus to delay the video-on-demand release. It became available on streaming platforms on June 30, with Blu-ray 4K and DVD scheduled for release on July 14.
Obsession follows Bear (Michael Johnston), a socially awkward young man who struggles with unreciprocated feelings for his friend Nikki (Inde Navarrette). Chaos ensues—complete with bloodshed—when Bear utilizes a “One Wish Willow” to make a poorly articulated wish for Nikki to love him more than anyone else in the world. He quickly realizes he should have been more cautious with his desire.
Inde Navarrette, left, and Michael Johnston star in the horror film Obsession. (Focus Features)
How Obsession is Changing the Game
The success of Obsession coincides with that of the horror film Backrooms (2026), which is directed by 20-year-old Kane Parsons and inspired by a series of YouTube videos. Both films have sparked an industry-wide discussion about the emergence of Gen Z filmmakers and their ability to attract younger audiences to cinemas.
Michael Stasko, a filmmaker and professor at the University of Windsor, noted that part of the film’s triumph can be attributed to its concise and captivating script.
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YouTube already had a place in Hollywood. The success of Backrooms and Obsession proves it’s undeniable
“Many films, particularly in the horror genre, often take their time to delve into secondary characters or focus on scenes that build the world,” he explained.
He emphasized that Obsession sidesteps this by having numerous events unfold simultaneously: world-building is integrated with engaging dialogue, and a few scares are paired with visual intrigue and character growth.
However, he pointed out that the film’s apparent overnight success was not as sudden as it seemed; Barker spent years developing his skills on his YouTube channel alongside friend Cooper Tomlinson, who also features in Obsession. Their channel has about 1.5 million subscribers.
“That audience was cultivated not through hefty marketing or PR budgets to attract viewers to his channel—he was simply producing genuinely interesting content,” Stasko remarked, adding that distributors are increasingly looking for filmmakers who have established audiences before they pitch their films.
Director Curry Barker on the set of his film Obsession. (Manny Liotta/Focus Features)
Ernest Mathijs, a film studies professor at the University of British Columbia, commented that Barker’s and Parsons’s YouTube backgrounds could signal a shift in the filmmaking landscape.
“They have a strong understanding of the medium. They’ve carved out a niche by creating short films for YouTube, which people watch, react to, and comment on, allowing them to refine their craft at a young age,” he noted.
“They are progressing through their learning curve much more rapidly than filmmakers did in previous eras, which I believe makes a significant difference.”
Mathijs anticipated that the film will likely be included in academic discussions.
“We are already ensuring we obtain a copy of the film, and it will be discussed in class. If it isn’t me who brings it up, it will likely be the students themselves.”
As for Barker, he has already filmed another horror project, Anything But Ghosts, which takes place in the same universe as Obsession and is scheduled for release next year.
He is also set to write and direct a remake of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and is contemplating the creation of an anthology series centered on wishes gone wrong.
