It’s hard to believe that Curry Barker’s Obsession is STILL making money in theaters, with the horror film hitting another massive milestone over three months after its original release.
Obsession just passed $500 million at the worldwide box office, becoming the first original movie – horror or otherwise – of the 2020s to hit that $500 million box office milestone!
The current worldwide total for Obsession is $501,596,715, while Curry Barker’s big screen debut has finished its United States box office run with a staggering $263,451,715.
The Wrap notes, “Barker’s disturbing tale of a woman forced to become an obsessive, murderous girlfriend by a man’s selfish wish has passed the 2023 Pixar film Elemental, which grossed $494.6 million globally, to become the top grossing original film since the COVID-19 pandemic.”
It’s stunning to be reminded of the fact that Obsession opened to just $17 million at the U.S. box office back in May, with the film’s week-to-week performance from there representing a practically unheard of level of growth. It’s the highest grossing horror movie of 2026 by a long shot, with Obsession‘s $501 million dwarfing the impressive $396 million total of A24’s Backrooms.
We must again remind you that the production budget for the independently-made Obsession was $750,000, with distributor Focus Features later acquiring the film for $15 million.
“Obsession stands as the highest grossing festival acquisition of all time,” The Wrap recognizes this week, “and the highest grossing film ever with a budget of less than $1 million.”
Obsession is now available on Digital in the U.S. and it’s also streaming on Peacock.
What’s next from Curry Barker? His follow-up feature Anything But Ghosts is coming soon, and he’ll be directing both an original horror movie and the next Texas Chainsaw Massacre film.
He’s also got ideas for more from the world of Obsession, but we might have to wait for that.
