A24's 'Backrooms' Film Adapts Digital Folklore with Existential Horror

A24's horror film 'Backrooms,' directed by YouTuber Kane Parsons, broke five box office records in its opening weekend, marking the mainstream breakthrough of a niche internet phenomenon. The concept originated from a 2019 4chan post on the /x/ board, where a user shared a yellow photo of a furniture store renovation and a prompt for 'disquieting images.' A reply described an endless, empty office space called the Backrooms, where one could 'noclip' out of reality. This sparked a viral creepypasta and online communities creating lore around liminal spaces and analog horror. Parsons' film maintains the existential dread but focuses on a personal story of Clark (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a furniture-store owner who enters the Backrooms through his store. The entity takes psychological form, reflecting Clark's stagnant life. Parsons references his YouTube lore, including the corporation Async, but expresses skepticism about excessive detail. The film pays tribute to the original photo's source—a Wisconsin furniture store renovation blog. Critics like Bradley Earl Wiggins interpret the Backrooms as a critique of consumerist society under late capitalism, while Aftermath describes it as echoing nostalgia for corporate pasts.