Key Takeaways
- A24 has offered Backrooms director Kane Parsons a three year deal reportedly worth around $65 million, the biggest the studio has ever put on the table, covering a Backrooms sequel plus another original film.
- Warner Bros, Universal and Sony are all trying to steal him. Warner Bros execs flew to Northern California to pitch him in person, and when the AC at his mom’s house broke, they rented a hotel conference room.
- He is 21 years old and made the original Backrooms short in his bedroom at 16. Studios fighting over a YouTuber is the healthiest thing to happen to Hollywood in years, and I mean that.
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Every studio in Hollywood is currently fighting over a 21-year-old who lives with his mom. I love everything about this story.
Kane Parsons, the kid behind the Backrooms, is reportedly weighing an offer from A24 worth somewhere around $65 million over three years. It is the biggest deal A24 has ever offered anyone. Not to a Best Actor winner. Not to a legendary director. To a guy who cannot rent a car yet.
The $65 Million Offer
Here is what is on the table, per The Hollywood Reporter: a three year first look deal with A24 that includes a Backrooms sequel and at least one more original film, with performance bonuses that could push the total to around $65 million depending on what he makes.
A24 is the frontrunner for obvious reasons. They bet on him first, they backed the Backrooms movie, and that bet paid off. But a first look deal is not signed until it is signed, and the rest of Hollywood knows it.
Warner Bros, Universal and Sony are all circling. HBO set up a Zoom with Casey Bloys and Francesca Orsi to pitch him on television. And here is the detail that matters: Parsons has said he watches more TV than movies, and he is reportedly a massive HBO fan. If you think that Zoom call was an accident, I have a bridge to sell you.
The 9 Minute Video That Started It
If you have never seen the original short, fix that right now. He posted it in January 2022 under the name Kane Pixels. He was 16. It is nine minutes of VHS-grade dread built in Blender in his bedroom, and it is scarier than most studio horror movies with hundred million dollar budgets.
The concept came from an old internet creepypasta about noclipping out of reality into endless empty office hallways, and if you grew up on gaming forums like I did, you know exactly the flavor of internet horror we are talking about. Parsons took a two paragraph forum post and turned it into a visual language. The humming fluorescent lights. The wet carpet yellow. The thing in the distance that the camera refuses to look at directly.
That video has been viewed well over a hundred million times across the series. A24 saw it, signed him to direct a feature while he was still in high school, and the rest is the bidding war we are watching now.
The Chase Is the Best Part
The detail I cannot get over, courtesy of Puck’s reporting: Warner Bros film chiefs Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy flew from Burbank to Northern California to pitch Parsons in person at his mom’s house. The air conditioning was broken. So Warner Bros rented a hotel conference room instead.
Picture that meeting. Two of the most powerful executives in film, the people who greenlight Batman movies, sitting in a rented conference room by the airport because a 21-year-old’s mom’s AC gave out in July. That is more entertaining than half the movies coming out this summer.
This is the same summer Nolan’s Odyssey is breaking brains, and the town’s biggest bidding war is over a YouTuber. Something real is shifting.
What This Means for Movies
Parsons is not alone, either. The same Hollywood Reporter piece pairs him with Curry Barker, another creator who came up through YouTube, and if you read my review of Obsession, you know I think Barker made the best horror movie in years. This is a pipeline now, not a fluke.
My take: this is the best trend in Hollywood, full stop. For twenty years the studios have been strip mining the same IP while telling us original ideas do not sell. Meanwhile two kids with cameras and free software built audiences bigger than most franchises, on their own, for free. The studios are not gambling on unknowns here. These guys have receipts. A hundred million views is a hundred million receipts.
The risk is real too. Nine great minutes does not automatically mean two great hours, and $65 million of pressure changes people. But I would rather watch Hollywood bet on a kid who invented his own visual language in Blender than fund another legacy sequel nobody asked for.
Wherever he signs, I am watching whatever he makes next. And if HBO steals him with a series, I will not even be mad. He earned the leverage. His mom should get the finder’s fee.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Kane Parsons?
A 21-year-old filmmaker, known online as Kane Pixels, who created the viral Backrooms found footage series on YouTube starting in January 2022 at age 16 and directed the A24 Backrooms feature film.
How much is the A24 deal worth?
Reports put the three year first look deal at around $65 million including performance bonuses, covering a Backrooms sequel and at least one more original film. It would be the biggest deal in A24 history.
Is a Backrooms sequel happening?
It is the centerpiece of the A24 offer, so if Parsons signs, yes. Nothing is officially greenlit until the deal closes.
Which other studios want to sign him?
Warner Bros, Universal and Sony have all made runs at him, and HBO leadership pitched him on television over Zoom. A24 is considered the frontrunner.
Where can I watch the original Backrooms video?
Free on YouTube on the Kane Pixels channel. The original short is nine minutes and the follow-up series continues the story.
