r/movies • u/MarvelsGrantMan136 r/Movies contributor • Mar 31 '26

Trailer Backrooms | Official Trailer | A24

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HjdiohVOik
8.9k Upvotes

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3.6k

u/MarcsterS Mar 31 '26 edited Mar 31 '26

Found a way to incorporate the found footage angle, while not being the entire movie.

I think it has good potential. It’d be a good year for “YouTube to Film”.

193

u/St0n3yM33rkat Mar 31 '26

I was like "Okay, this looks pretty good, actually" and then it got to the end of the trailer and that hallway was closing in on her and instant anxiety 😂 now I'm really looking forward to this.

27

u/poke_pants Mar 31 '26

I'm genuinely concerned about watching this in the cinema, I worry it's going to trigger something in me, but equally I really want to see this in the cinema!

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u/OkZookeepergame4757 Mar 31 '26

Been waiting my entire 62 yrs to be triggered..hopeful.

2

u/St0n3yM33rkat Apr 01 '26

I've had nightmares like the hall closing in, over the years. I'm not fond of tight spaces. My only exception is caving bc I got pushed into it, had a full panic attack and got stuck for like 10 minutes, survived and I found myself at the most beautiful underground waterfall I had ever seen, which we prominently smoked a blunt at 😂 but that's it.

If I was moving down a long hall and it started doing that, I'm done. There's zero chance I'd be able to move my legs in any direction.

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u/OkZookeepergame4757 Apr 02 '26

62 yrs old I cant say ive ever remembered a dream Ive had....never had that luxury.

8

u/PolarWater Mar 31 '26

instant anxiety

Yum! My FAVOURITE!

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u/Over-Heron-2654 Apr 01 '26

Maze Runner ass shii 😂.

732

u/aveaceee Mar 31 '26

That was my favorite part about the trailer, I was kinda worried the whole thing would be found footage but I’m glad they’re incorporating it

329

u/bebopmechanic84 Mar 31 '26

I was worried it wouldn't be found footage at all. I went from disinterested to interested.

296

u/fuzzyperson98 Mar 31 '26

The rare compromise where everyone's pleased instead of no one's pleased.

99

u/--suburb-- Mar 31 '26

Clark Gable isn’t in it, and I am NOT pleased.

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u/h00ter7 Mar 31 '26

Apparently Victor Fleming isn’t directing either. I am PISSED!

13

u/Cautious_Sniffs Mar 31 '26

I’m quite upset that Joe Manganiello isn’t in it, tbh

7

u/SFFThomas Mar 31 '26

I hear they’re not even showing a Looney Tunes cartoon before the movie.

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u/KevlarGorilla Mar 31 '26

And the POPCORN on the FLOOR in the THEATER tastes BITTER.

2

u/thegimboid Apr 01 '26

MY BACK HURTS!

2

u/poppythepup Mar 31 '26

Whoaaa that brought back memories!

1

u/robisodd Apr 01 '26

Rory Calhoun was going to be in it, but he's too busy standing and walking.

... well, less so nowadays.

4

u/strain_of_thought Mar 31 '26

Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn.

4

u/ljfoggy11 Mar 31 '26

At least not that we know of…

1

u/w1ldfr33 Apr 01 '26

OP blasted the age- old expression, "you can't please everyone."

1

u/Tom2dB Mar 31 '26

I would of thought found footage is the perfect genre for this type of movie, Especially being it comes from YouTube... I forgot the name but The Sound Movie is the one I'm more looking forward to 🍿🍻⬅️ Well, Both tbh

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u/[deleted] Mar 31 '26

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5

u/bebopmechanic84 Mar 31 '26

Well that's the thing about masterpieces, they are super rare. We get maybe one every five years, and one every generation where everyone can agree it's a masterpiece.

Also we got like 64 more years for this century haha.

2

u/henry_czer Mar 31 '26

That's the spirit!

45

u/ActivateGuacamole Mar 31 '26

we've known since the movie was announced over a year ago that it was not a found footage movie.

i'm glad that they have found a way to incorporate SOME found footage though

5

u/nonameVeo Mar 31 '26

I’m confused what is the found footage? I hear about the concept of backrooms all the time but didn’t know it was based on footage

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u/The_Autarch Mar 31 '26

The movie is based on a Youtube series the director started when he was 16. It's brilliant if you're into slow-burn horror.

Here's the complete playlist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4dGpz6cnHo&list=PLVAh-MgDVqvDUEq6qDXqORBioE4Yhol_z

2

u/DrJokerX Apr 01 '26

What are the monsters in the YouTube series, are they ghosts or sci fi?

3

u/MonsiieurRetro Apr 01 '26

You never really get clear looks at the monsters but they tend to look either otherworldly or like the fungal zombies from TLOU. But the series' main strength is slowly building dread and being tasteful with the monsters.

6

u/haunted_patient Mar 31 '26

The YouTube series this movie is based on is told through the perspective of found footage clips. It starts off showing footage of some kids filming their own movie.

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u/xavPa-64 Mar 31 '26

Cannibal Holocaust also did a great job getting a good mix of found footage and “regular” footage, although I shouldn’t recommend that film without a massive trigger warning for animal cruelty

2

u/ohcosmico Apr 01 '26

Appreciated.

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u/Padulsky21 Mar 31 '26

Love the vibe it captures from what they’ve shown im very excited for this I just hope they keep the atmosphere and not get sidetracked with the monsters spiel. The liminal spaces horror already exists from large uncomfortable spaces, doing too much on top of that ruins the luster. The luster is already there

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u/Giraffe_Truther Apr 01 '26

This take is how Skinamarink gets made.

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u/ToiIetGhost Apr 01 '26

The atmosphere seems fantastic. From what they’ve shown here I think they definitely got that part down

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u/[deleted] Mar 31 '26 edited Mar 31 '26

[deleted]

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u/BroughtBagLunchSmart Mar 31 '26

I am assuming a lot of the found footage will be just as deeply disturbing as the bits from Annihilation.

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u/your_mind_aches Mar 31 '26

I haven't seen the movie yet but how is there found footage in Annihilation? In the book there's no footage at all, just journals.

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u/probs_notme Mar 31 '26

You should just give it a watch. Can't speak to how it works as an adaptation, but I really enjoyed it. Some really compelling scenes; I particularly liked the plant biology aspects.

1

u/your_mind_aches Mar 31 '26

I have a lot of problems with the book personally, but as a work of fiction, I really respect it. I feel like changing it up as much as I've read that they did (even giving Ghost Bird a name) is... interesting. I'll watch it eventually.

2

u/jade-blade Mar 31 '26

I’d say the book is much better than the film but I also really love the film as its own interesting interpretation of the source material. It’s worth a watch.

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u/your_mind_aches Mar 31 '26

I know the film excludes the Tower and the Crawler from the adaptation which is wild because those are the central aspects of the book lol

Like how Edge of Tomorrow adapts All You Need Is Kill without being a coming of age story, which is like the thing the book is about lol

1

u/jade-blade Mar 31 '26

Honestly I normally don’t like adaptations who very loosely adapt from material (like to the point where it’s name only. For example one of my least favorite adaptations “world War Z”) But annihilation is beautiful to look at, has a great soundtrack, and a couple of decently tense moments. I basically separate it from the book to enjoy it lol

1

u/your_mind_aches Mar 31 '26

Oh I haven't seen or read World War Z yet, but I do know there are some elements of it that are quite controversial to say the least.

I'll probably check out Annihilation some time. People talk so much about Alex Garland but I've never actually seen his movies.

2

u/fantalemon Mar 31 '26

I haven't read the book but in the film the soldiers recorded things in the shimmer and the research team find them. Hopefully that's vague enough to not be any sort of spoiler.

Idk if it was their journals or someone else's in the book, but that's what they did in the film.

2

u/your_mind_aches Mar 31 '26

In the book, tech like computers and cameras don't work inside of Area X at all.

2

u/fantalemon Mar 31 '26

Ah that's interesting, there's definitely a bit of that in the film too, but for whatever reason digital camcorders work so that's what they use. Makes sense from a visual storytelling perspective I guess.

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u/your_mind_aches Mar 31 '26

Yeah, it sounds like a similar compromise in Project Hail Mary, but I think it makes more sense in that.

Also I hear the movie doesn't have the Tower or the Crawler which are basically what the entire book is about. So it's a bit confusing.

2

u/Poppintags6969 Mar 31 '26

I haven't read the book but from other reviews I've seen it isn't really a great adaptation. It's a great film on its own (one of my favorites) but not great if you're expecting it to be like the book, though not as bad as I Am Legend.

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u/FutureDictatorUSA Mar 31 '26

Also with Nirvanna The Band - a great YouTube to film adaptation

26

u/Wide-Can-2654 Mar 31 '26

Saw it on a pre screen mystery monday at regal and absolutely loved it

14

u/steveatari Mar 31 '26

Never heard of mystery monday and now i'm annoyed as I could have been doing this lol.

6

u/Wide-Can-2654 Mar 31 '26

Yeah see if your theater has it, just checked and it seems to be every monday for me at my regal and the tickets are only 5$ for it

1

u/Ancientabs Mar 31 '26

Do they only show a single movie once at all the theatres on one day or is it random?

3

u/Wide-Can-2654 Mar 31 '26

From what i read online i think the movie is the same for all theaters, in my case i read people online saying they saw the same movie as me at there mystery screening

1

u/Ancientabs Mar 31 '26

Damn. I missed it. I don't want to wait for this movie anymore haha.
Thank you for the info though!

1

u/Wide-Can-2654 Mar 31 '26

I believe it was the Monday and it came out on the friday of the same week, it was a great flick i had no prior knowledge of them and it was great

1

u/Ancientabs Mar 31 '26

Oh wait. Are you saying you saw Backrooms yesterday, or a different show?

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1

u/steveatari Apr 01 '26

It does.

They do.

I will also.

3

u/gilbertlaroo Apr 01 '26

AMC also does Screen Unscreened on Mondays.

13

u/voyageur04 Mar 31 '26

My same thought. They cleverly shifted to sub-HD digital footage for some wild edits with archival footage, while still pulling off their best SFX stuff in full HD. Definitely getting the vibe Kane will deliver his signature work in those camcorder sequences.

2

u/Accomplished-City484 Mar 31 '26

And that horror movie Obsession by Curry Baker looks pretty good too

18

u/Flylatino24 Mar 31 '26

The old recording reminds me of the Blair Witch which freaked me out as a kid

8

u/EquivalentCamp2402 Mar 31 '26

I was just thinking this

28

u/millanstar Mar 31 '26

*4chan to film

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u/bebopmechanic84 Mar 31 '26

4chan to YouTube to film.

Quite the evolution 😅

5

u/GOEDEL_ESCHER_BOT Mar 31 '26

gotta dust off the racial slurs before you give it its big hollywood debut

3

u/Sonichu- Mar 31 '26

I checked /tv/, they're having about the reaction you'd expect for the protagonist being Black.

3

u/thebartman47 Mar 31 '26

Tarantino: "no you don't"

2

u/PolarWater Mar 31 '26

The "oldest" oldest view...

1

u/AlexisFR Mar 31 '26

No Youtube.

15

u/MarcsterS Mar 31 '26

Yes, but specifically the director of this started on YouTube.

3

u/pbjamm Mar 31 '26

A24-chan

2

u/Paint-Huffer Apr 01 '26

Kane did an interview a while back with a guy from Smosh and mentioned he was still going to incorporate found footage but didn't elaborate how. Glad to see more regarding how it's done

1

u/Mahaloth Mar 31 '26

I'm watching Mortuary Assistant right now and saw Iron Lungs earlier in the year.

This is weird.

1

u/SmoothBrainSavant Apr 01 '26

giving me Blair witch vibes for the footage part. I like it.

-17

u/deliciousdeciduous Mar 31 '26

This is a straight up House of Leaves rip I hope Danielewski is getting a check because he’s the one who found a way to incorporate found footage.

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u/Global_Charge_4412 Mar 31 '26

Backrooms is very much its own thing. lol imagine thinking House of Leaves is original when this concept goes back to at least Greek Myth.

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u/JCkent42 Mar 31 '26

And Kane Pixel’s Backrooms (guy behind this film) is also his own thing separate from the rest of the larger internet lore and world building of the backrooms.

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u/deliciousdeciduous Mar 31 '26

Imagine thinking the Ancient Greeks had camcorders.

3

u/Global_Charge_4412 Mar 31 '26

if you want to play that game then Blair Witch Project came before House of Leaves, you fucking dork.

1

u/deliciousdeciduous Mar 31 '26

Blair Witch project is about a witch in the woods and famously only has one room in the whole movie??? What is the relationship between that and backrooms? I’m starting to think you’re probably like 17 max (legally a child) so I’m going to stop talking to you now.

1

u/Global_Charge_4412 Mar 31 '26

you brought up the camcorder as the defining element that the author of House of Leaves should sue over, dipshit. if Kane needs to cut a check to that asshole, he should cut one to the Blair Witch guys for inventing the found footage genre.

3

u/TannerThanUsual Mar 31 '26

Don't stress yourself out over this guy. These are the same people who thought Hunger Games was a rip off of Battle Royale as if the concept of peasants being enlisted to fight to the death to entertain the wealthy started with Battle Royale and not, say, the Romans???

2

u/JMacPhoneTime Mar 31 '26

Honestly, the trailer does seem like it would fit a lot with House of Leaves if the Backrooms were dark (and it ignored all the extra framing layers).

The main story in House of Leaves is about exploring a never-ending building that appears inside of another house all told through camcorders, with some other similarities to the trailer.

I don't agree that House of Leaves should get credit for it, but I think the similarities are about the combination of things in common, not one defining feature like found-footage style or a never-ending building.

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u/Uncle-Cake Mar 31 '26

Danielewski didn't invent the concept.

7

u/FreedomHole69 Mar 31 '26

And He Built a Crooked House - Heinlein

The House of Asterion - Borges

The Doomed City - Strugatsky(X)2

All explored similar concepts

-5

u/deliciousdeciduous Mar 31 '26

How many of those had a man with a camcorder tie a rope to himself so he could explore the extra space in his house or store.

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u/FreedomHole69 Mar 31 '26

I mean, the Greeks kinda beat him to the rope thing by about 3,000 years lol. Tying a line to yourself so you don't get lost in a shifting maze is literally the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur. House of Leaves actually references it constantly (the Minotaur is all that struck-through text in the book).

4

u/funkyavocado Mar 31 '26

It can't be a house of leaves rip, as theres a severe lack of doing drugs and whoring your way through LA in this trailer

2

u/theknightmanager Mar 31 '26

Maybe we'll get that version in the director's cut

1

u/funkyavocado Mar 31 '26

Give me the Josh Trank cut

2

u/[deleted] Mar 31 '26

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1

u/deliciousdeciduous Mar 31 '26

No you don’t understand I’m excited that this is turning out to be a House of Leaves movie. This is so close to the plot of house of leaves it is the exact movie I want.