Backrooms' $118M Success Sparks Hollywood Hunt for Reddit‑Sourced Stories

The horror film *Backrooms*, directed by YouTuber Kane Parsons and released by A24, became the studio’s highest‑grossing movie, earning about $118 million worldwide. The movie originated from the r/backrooms subreddit, where users built a shared mythology that Parsons turned into a viral YouTube series before the studio adaptation. Following the film’s box‑office success, Hollywood agencies are actively scanning Reddit for new material, with assistants reporting that they have identified “a bunch” of subreddits and short stories that could be turned into movies. Reddit’s chief marketing officer Jim Squires described the platform as “the most powerful focus group that ever existed,” noting that producers can approach moderators directly to negotiate deals. Other Reddit‑originated projects in development include a horror story from r/nosleep starring Sydney Sweeney and an adaptation of “I Pretended to Be a Missing Girl.”

Industry observers say the trend signals a shift toward using online communities as real‑time incubators for intellectual property, potentially reshaping how Hollywood discovers and tests future hits.