As “Obsession” continues to light up the box office to the tune of over $150 million domestic, the indie horror hit is paying big bucks on the back end. Jason Blum’s Blumhouse Atomic is making $17 million in box office bonuses on the movie as an executive producer who helped market the film, three individuals with knowledge of the situation told TheWrap.
An original psychological thriller about a magical wish gone wrong, YouTuber-turned-Hollywood filmmaker Curry Barker’s “Obsession” was independently produced for just $750,000 by Under the Shell, Tea Shop Productions and Capstone Pictures. It premiered in the midnight section of last year’s Toronto International Film Festival, where it became one of the buzziest titles at the event and was acquired by Focus Features for $15 million.
Blum was brought onto “Obsession” as an executive producer a month and a half after the acquisition of the film to help with the marketing, and negotiated a box office bonus structure of $2 million after the film hit $25 million domestic at the box office, according to an individual with knowledge of the deal. Blumhouse Atomic also receives additional box office bonuses of $500,000 for every $5 million thereafter.
With the bonuses, Blum’s company has earned in the ballpark of $17 million, more than Barker or producer Haley Nicole Johnson, according to three individuals familiar with the deals.
Blumhouse Atomic declined to comment for this story.
An individual close to the film said that Capstone will make $45 million to $50 million on the film, which the financier will share with the creative team, including filmmaker Curry Barker. Capstone could not be reached for comment.
The same individual said that Focus stands to make $125 million on the film. Focus Features did not respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.
Focus released “Obsession” in May, and it rode positive reviews and Gen Z buzz to a rare box office feat: Barker’s film made more in its second weekend than its first, then made more in its third weekend than its second. The film ignited a YouTuber-turned-filmmaker movement alongside A24’s record-breaking “Backrooms,” and is on its way to joining “The Exorcist,” “Sinners” and the “It” films as only the fifth horror movie to gross $200 million domestically before inflation.
Blum revealed at the Produced By conference in late May that he came aboard “Obsession” by way of Barker’s next feature, “Anything but Ghosts.” That horror-comedy was being produced by Adam Hendricks and Greg Gilreath, who called Blum and urged him to watch “Obsession” ahead of its debut in Toronto last fall, asking if he’d finance “Anything but Ghosts.”
Blum had a conversation with Barker, after which he committed to finance “Ghosts,” but then he accompanied the filmmaker to the TIFF premiere of “Obsession” where the Focus partnership on both films was struck.
“They asked us about helping market and get behind ‘Obsession,’ which we did,” Blum explained. Then Blum pitched Focus boarding “Anything but Ghosts” as well. That film, which is now in post-production and stars Barker, will be released sometime in the next year.
Since 2009’s microbudget horror hit “Paranormal Activity,” Blum has made a career out of shepherding smaller budgeted films – especially in the horror genre – to box office success, but his involvement level varies from project to project. In 2024, Blum’s Blumhouse Productions joined forces with James Wan’s Atomic Monster to form Blumhouse Atomic.
“He gets to brag about a movie he got put on after they acquired it, and he gets paid more than anybody else, that’s Hollywood,” one insider said.
Clarity on Blumhouse Atomic’s deal comes after “Obsession” art director Sally Choi went public Thursday with complaints that she made under $7,000 for what she described as strenuous, cross-department work on the now box office hit. While admitting that she knew and agreed to the indie production rate beforehand, she explained, “This is the reality of most filmmakers, especially those who work below the line. We become a line in the budget sheet to keep as low as possible.”
Choi’s post went viral and ignited debate about the pay structure of indie productions, especially those that find acquisition and see box office success.
She called on others in the filmmaking community to speak up: “Maybe we can turn a tide in the film industry,” she wrote.
“Obsession” has grossed over $229 million worldwide.
