YouTube Directors' Films Top U.S. Box Office

Two films directed by creators who first built audiences on YouTube finished first and second at the domestic box office this weekend. Backrooms, directed by twenty-year-old Kane Parsons, opened to $81.4 million domestically and $118 million worldwide.

The A24 horror film surpassed the studio's previous record of $25.5 million set by Civil War. Parsons developed the property as a YouTube creepypasta series before directing the feature. Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve star.

Obsession, directed by twenty-six-year-old Curry Barker, rose 10 percent in its third weekend to $26.4 million. The domestic total stands at $104.7 million and the global total at $148 million. The film is the highest-grossing release in Focus Features history.

Its production budget was $750,000. Barker previously distributed a short film called Milk and Serial on YouTube for $800. That short led to the meeting that produced Obsession.

France, mk2 alt acquired Two Sleepy People, a romantic comedy made by digital creators for roughly $100,000. The deal covers European territories. The film stars and was directed by Baron Ryan and co-written by Caroline Grossman.

2026 hosted a dedicated Creator Summit for the first time in its 78-year history. The half-day event drew standing-room-only attendance. mk2 general manager Elisha Karmitz participated on a panel with YouTube's Angela Courtin and creator Markiplier.

Markiplier's Iron Lung has earned over $50 million globally. Karmitz said YouTube is now a place where fans gather and that mk2's role is to reinvent the cinema experience for its era. mk2's YouTube Ciné-Club label has sold over 500,000 tickets across Europe.