Peter Chernin says Hollywood should take more risks after ‘Backrooms’
The producer says studios should avoid chasing YouTube deals blindly and instead back fresh ideas at disciplined budgets.
By Sofia Marchetti · World Affairs Correspondent
3 min read
“Backrooms” has pushed Hollywood to look harder at low-budget films built from online fanbases, after the psychological horror movie passed $100 million at the domestic box office in six days. Producer Peter Chernin said the lesson for studios is not to copy the film’s YouTube roots, but to take more chances on new ideas.
Chernin, whose Chernin Entertainment coproduced and cofinanced “Backrooms” with A24, told CNBC that a rush to sign YouTube creators would be a mistake. He compared that reaction to Hollywood’s habit of following sequels and existing brands rather than looking for new material.
“Backrooms” was directed by Kane Parsons, a YouTube creator whose series inspired the film. CNBC reported that the movie cost $10 million to make and became A24’s top-grossing domestic release after crossing the $100 million mark.
The film also drew heavily from younger moviegoers. Comscore Movies and Screen Engine PostTrak found that 86% of ticket buyers on the film’s opening weekend were younger than 35, according to CNBC.
Its breakout followed another low-cost horror success, “Obsession,” which CNBC reported was made for $750,000 and has also earned more than $100 million domestically. Both films were directed by YouTube creators and have led executives and analysts to ask whether the studio model needs to change.
Chernin warns against copying the formula
Chernin told CNBC that most attempts to chase the same trend will likely fail if studios treat YouTube creators as the next easy formula. He said studios should focus on originality, innovation, fresh intellectual property and new voices.
Chernin has worked on both sides of the entertainment business. CNBC noted that he ran Fox’s film and television divisions from 1996 to 2009, a period that included “Titanic” and “Avatar.”
He later founded The Chernin Group in 2010, a private equity firm that invested in creator economy companies including Fullscreen and Tumblr. In 2022, he cofounded North Road, a global content studio that includes Chernin Entertainment.
Chernin told CNBC that experience with online creators helped his team understand “Backrooms.” He said the film worked because it felt current and authentic to younger audiences, rather than like another extension of an older franchise.
Franchise fatigue shapes the debate
Hollywood has long leaned on familiar properties, from superhero series to books and toys, to lower the risk of theatrical releases. CNBC reported that most top domestic films since 2010 have been based on established intellectual property, though box office analysts have warned that audiences are showing signs of fatigue with franchises and sequels.
Eric Handler, a media and entertainment analyst at Roth, told CNBC that younger viewers still want the shared theater experience, but are looking for different types of movies. He pointed to the weak opening of Disney’s “The Mandalorian and Grogu” as a sign that some franchise films are losing pull with that audience.
Handler said studios may start searching more broadly for ideas, especially when movies can be made at lower cost. Chernin framed the issue as a budgeted approach to risk: studios should accept more uncertainty when the upside is meaningful and the spending is controlled.
This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.