“Obsession” has been tearing it up at the box office ever since it hit theaters in May. But director Curry Barker’s low-budget horror sensation has entered another tier of rare territory with its most recent milestone, joining Ryan Coogler’s box office behemoth “Sinners” in an elite category. It’s good company for any movie to be in, but for a first-time feature director? It’s as good as it gets.
Over the weekend, “Obsession” added another $13.3 million domestically, dropping just 30% in its sixth frame. With that, the movie’s running total in North America has climbed to $215 million. Globally, the Focus Feature released has amassed $332.4 million, with a whole lot of gas left in the tank. With that, it joins “Sinners” as the only original Hollywood movies since 2020 to make at least $200 million at the domestic box office.
Coogler’s acclaimed vampire flick made $370.2 million worldwide, with $279.9 million of that money coming from North America. At the time when it hit that milestone, “Sinners” became the first original movie since “Coco” in 2017 to make at least $200 million domestically. This just goes to show how truly rare a sizable, original breakout hit is in Hollywood these days, even before the pandemic upended the industry. The fact that original horror movies have hit that mark in back-to-back years further demonstrates the strength of the genre right now.
In “Obsession,” a young man breaks a mysterious “One Wish Willow” to win his crush’s heart and soon finds himself getting exactly what he asked for. However, he quickly discovers that his wish comes with a sinister price that must be paid. Michael Johnson and Inde Navarrette lead the cast.
Obsession has entered incredibly rare territory at the box office
One thing that sets “Sinners” and “Obsession” apart is their respective price tags. Ryan Coogler’s vampire epic carried a sizable $90 million budget, which Warner Bros. was ultimately rewarded for putting up. Curry Barker, meanwhile, made his buzzy feature for under $1 million, with Focus Features then acquiring the rights for $15 million. That proved to be money very well spent.
Barker’s breakout is now on track to become one of the most profitable movies of all time, joining other low-budget movies that made a killing at the box office. It’s no secret that original movies have had a tough time in recent years, but we have to go back pretty damn far to find original hits this big, particularly of the non-animated variety. Looking back illustrates just how rare the air is that this movie is currently breathing.
Prior to 2017, both “Zootopia” ($341.2 million) and “Moana” ($206.4 million) pulled in north of $200 million domestically in 2016, but both of those were animated. We have to go back to 2013 with “Gravity” ($254.8 million) to find another live-action original that hit the benchmark. It just doesn’t happen all that often.
Barker is going to be very busy, as he’s got a new “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” movie to make, in addition to another movie he just sold to Blumhouse and Universal. It’s also very likely that “Obsession” is going to get a sequel, which will turn it into a franchise. That’s just the nature of the beast. Even Pixar officially confirmed “Coco 2” last year. If Hollywood is lucky enough to find an original hit this big, it’s exceptionally rare that it remains a one-off.
“Obsession” is in theaters now, and “Sinners” is streaming on HBO Max.
