The weekend box office is going to be very weird.
Already we can see that “Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu” is in trouble.
Yesterday M&G finished third to two horror movies made by young social media graduates.
This could be how the weekend pans out, too.
The movies are “Backrooms,” directed by Kane Parsons aka Kane Pixels. It made $10 million on Thursday night, swamping “M&G.”
The other movie is “Obsession,” at number 2, already with $78 million banked after two weeks. The director is Curry Barker, 26, who got his start on YouTube.
Parsons at 20 is the youngest director ever of a feature film. He also cut his teeth on YouTube and social media.
According to an AI summary, Parsons created the original “Backrooms” viral found-footage horror videos on YouTube using Blender and DIY VFX before being signed to direct the official movie. He also has real actors including stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, and Mark Duplass.
The biggest name in “Obsession” is Conan O’Brien’s sidekick, Andy Richter. That movie was made for just $1 million.
The “Backrooms” budget was $10 million, and produced with A24.
And then there’s “M&G.” It cost between $150 and $200 million. It’s the lowest grossing “Star Wars” movie ever. But it should be pointed out that it has no connection to the main “Star Wars” movies other than Jabba the Hutt’s family. It’s a brand license. Even though it follows a TV series, it’s original IP, really.
But Parsons and Barker are “disruptors.” When the box office is counted on Sunday, they will have disrupted Disney in a profound way.
