“Obsession,” Curry Barker’s feature debut, was acquired by Focus Features last year out of TIFF for around $15M. It looks like that’s basically how much it’s going to earn this opening weekend.
Barker’s film, which sits at 79 on Metacritic, nabbed $2.6M in previews on Thursday and is headed towards a $15M weekend, maybe more if word of mouth manages to spread fast enough through Sunday.
In fact, even though “Obsession” will be this weekend’s biggest debut, the box office is so stacked at the moment that it might finish at #4. “Michael” and “The Devil Wears Prada 2” will actually be fighting for #1 — can you imagine “Michael” retaking the top spot in its fourth week of release? That is actually a very likely scenario.
Regardless, and back to Barker, “Obsession” only cost $10M to make, and he’s already shot his next film for Focus, with a planned ‘Texas Chainsaw’ reboot also lined up at A24. The kid’s hot. He’s another YouTube breakout transitioning to cinema. Barker is behind 2024’s $800 DIY movie “Milk & Serial” (2M views and counting), and with “Obsession” he delivers a horror-comedy hybrid that’s incredibly unnerving.
“Obsession” is part awkward rom-com, part psychological horror. The story revolves around Bear (Michael Johnston), a shy kid who can’t confess his feelings to his childhood friend Nikki (Inde Navarrette). Instead, he purchases a toy from an antique store that grants one wish. Nikki falls for him instantly, and hard—but under a curse that flips affection into full-on stalker-mode mania.
Navarrette is the real standout here—her performance is deranged, hilarious, and terrifying all at once. She wails, grins, and stalks with a commitment that borders on possessed psychopathy.
I expect “Obsession” to have some major legs. This is the type of film today’s horror crowd craves — the kind where friends tell friends to go see it.