Mark Duplass is coming to the defense of Kane Parsons, the young director of the new horror film Backrooms. Amid social media chatter questioning Parsons’s role, Duplass wanted to set the record straight.
Backrooms, which hits theaters this Friday, features Duplass alongside stars like Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve. The film, backed by A24, explores a therapist’s quest to find a missing patient in a strange dimension of endless rooms. At just 20, Parsons becomes the youngest feature director in A24’s history. He began the Backrooms series on YouTube in 2022, where he created a world of infinite hallways.
Critics on social media have speculated whether Parsons truly directed the film, especially given the involvement of seasoned producers like James Wan and Shawn Levy. Duplass responded directly to one user who questioned Parsons’s contribution. He emphasized that during filming, Parsons was “100% in control,” even more so than many much older directors.
In a recent panel discussion, Parsons shared that the film’s team built an impressive 30,000 square feet of actual backrooms. He mentioned the film takes a unique approach, focusing on characters who lead isolated, lonely lives. “It’s a pretty lonely film,” he noted, highlighting that only one or two characters appear on screen at a time.
This trend of YouTube creators stepping into major filmmaking is growing. Earlier this year, YouTube star Markiplier released his horror film Iron Lung after various studios turned it down. Surprising many, it grossed over $43 million globally, challenging the stigma surrounding YouTubers in cinema.
Markiplier remarked, “There still is a stigma against YouTube… It has to be normalized until it becomes boring, and it’s like, ‘Of course a YouTuber can do this.’” This shift may signal a new era in filmmaking, where creators from digital platforms continue to gain recognition and success.
For more on the evolving landscape of YouTube creators in film, check out this report from The Hollywood Reporter.
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A24,Backrooms,Chiwetel Ejiofor,Curry Barker,James Wan,Kane Parsons,Mark Duplass,Osgood Perkins,Renate Reinsve,Shawn Levy,social media,YouTube
