The digital age has birthed a new generation of horror auteurs, with platforms like YouTube serving as a launchpad for terrifying visions. From the Philippou brothers' Talk to Me to Markiplier's Iron Lung, online scares are increasingly making the leap to the big screen. Now, A24 is bringing one of the platform's most unsettling phenomena to theaters with Backrooms, and the first full trailer has arrived to plunge audiences into its yellow-hued nightmare.
Based on the massively popular web series by creator Kane Pixels (Kane Parsons), Backrooms explores a labyrinthine complex that exists just outside reality. The original shorts, which began in 2022 and have amassed hundreds of millions of views, follow the organization Async as they study the anomalous, ever-shifting space where people mysteriously vanish. The film adaptation, directed by Parsons himself, promises to expand this lore on a cinematic scale.
A Glimpse Into the Liminal Horror
The newly released trailer finally pulls back the curtain on the film's plot, which centers on a strange doorway discovered in the basement of a furniture showroom. What follows is a descent into the iconic, endlessly repeating halls of yellow wallpaper and buzzing fluorescent lights. The footage escalates from eerie, liminal emptiness to sheer, incomprehensible terror, showcasing the monstrous threats that lurk within this impossible architecture.
Leading the cast into this abyss are Oscar nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor and The Worst Person in the World breakout Renate Reinsve. They are joined by Mark Duplass, Finn Bennett, Lukita Maxwell, and Avan Jogia. The project unites horror heavyweights behind the scenes as well, with James Wan's Atomic Monster, Chernin Entertainment, and 21 Laps Entertainment producing. The script comes from Ash vs. Evil Dead writer Will Soodik.
Confidence in a Young Visionary
At just 19 years old during production, Kane Parsons became the youngest director in A24's history. Veteran actor Mark Duplass, who joined the project partly to mentor the young filmmaker, was quickly impressed by Parsons' command. In a past interview, Duplass praised the director's meticulous vision and calm authority on set, stating he felt "very, very comfortable in his hands." This confidence suggests the film is in capable hands, poised to faithfully translate the unique dread of the online series.
The adaptation joins a wave of successful transitions from online cult hits to mainstream entertainment, much like how Sam Raimi's Spider-Man Trilogy helped define superhero cinema for a generation. Similarly, the success of streaming series like Idris Elba's 'Hijack' proves audiences crave tense, high-concept thrillers.
Backrooms arrives in theaters on May 29, aiming to be the must-see horror event of the season. For fans of the original series and newcomers alike, the trailer promises a chilling exploration of one of the internet's most enduring modern myths. If you're looking for another genre-bending story to dive into, consider the sci-fi mystery of 'Paper Girls' for a different kind of reality-warping adventure.
