Horror film 'Obsession' surpasses US$400 million at the box office

Two months after its release in theaters, "Obsession" has racked up US$403 million in ticket sales worldwide. Of this total, US$245 million came from North America and US$157 million from other markets.

Produced with a budget of just US$750,000, the film became a rare case of high profitability for an original title. The film was purchased by Focus Features for $14 million at last year's Toronto Film Festival, according to Variety.

Even after eight weekends in theaters, "Obsession" continues to attract audiences and survived the 4th of July holiday period in the USA. The collection was US$5.3 million in the domestic market and US$12 million abroad during the holiday, according to Variety.

The box office in North America is approaching US$250 million, a level that few films reach in the post-pandemic scenario. The low-budget thriller debuted in May with US$17 million in the region and, in the following weeks, had four consecutive weekends with greater grosses than its release.

The performance was driven by positive word of mouth and support from the Gen Z audience. The plot follows Bear (Michael Johnston), a down-on-his-luck romantic who makes a wish for his friend Nikki (Inde Navarrette) to fall in love with him, which brings dire consequences.

OTHER HORROR TITLES HAVE ALSO GROWN WITH YOUNG AUDIENCES

"Obsession" is cited alongside "Backrooms", by A24, as an example of horror that gained momentum and contradicted the idea that young people would be less interested in going to the cinema. According to Variety, "Backrooms" has grossed US$347 million worldwide so far.

"Backrooms" is also directed by a creator who came from YouTube, Kane Parsons, in a similar move to that of the director of "Obsession", Curry Barker. The combination of low budget, social media appeal and full screenings helped keep the films in the spotlight for several weeks.

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