Written by Jacob Flores, Staff Writer
With the Backrooms movie releasing soon, what do we know so far? How did this film even begin as a production?
As 2026’s lineup of movies continues to dominate the box office, there has only been one movie on everyone’s mind: “The Backrooms” movie. The film began in 2023, and is directed by Kane Parsons and written by Will Soodik. Based on the popular internet creepypasta image, Kane Parsons (otherwise known as Kane Pixels on YouTube) took inspiration from the popularity of the image and decided to make a web series based on it; he created a multi-episode series that varied from story to story about people falling in the so-called Backrooms. If you are unfamiliar with the Backrooms, it is a different world that primarily resembles average day spaces, for example an office space, or nostalgia-based memories of a person’s life. The web series is set in the 1990’s and it is explained that the Backrooms is a different universe that started appearing in the real world and trapping people in it for all eternity. Although there is an exit, entities play a main role in the series as they leave the viewers on edge and wondering what really is in all of this empty space.
The web series was a smash hit amongst the analog horror community and went on to grow over 100 million views combined with every episode. Kane was also met with major praise due to his advanced skill for creating a 3-dimensional environment made from blender. This skill caught the eye of the famous movie production company A24. In an interview, Kane states that “A24 loved the idea and reached out to me on trying to make it into a big screen production. I immediately said yes and now I’m producing a horror movie at the age of 19, which is crazy for me to imagine.” With production starting in 2023 and continuing all the way to 2026, there was little to no word on the details of the movie until recently. The first trailer was released on March 31st, 2026, and immediately blew up all over the internet. The teaser tells the story of a man named Clark, who finds his way into the Backrooms inside an empty furniture store and tries to prove its existence to his therapist, Renate. When he goes missing, Renate finally goes through with his story and enters the dimension to find him. Although it’s never explicitly stated how or why Clark was in the furniture store in the first place, it adds a sort of depth to the story that leaves viewers on edge from what is to come. The trailer also makes nods and references to different scenes and props from Kane’s Backrooms analog horror project, and notes that there is something present awaiting to be fully revealed.
Although many questions are to be answered, the upcoming release date of May 29th holds all the answers we need. The film is a tribute to the community and fan base the series Kane has created while also being an engaging experience that is easy for newcomers to understand. What started off as a simple image, taken of an abandoned office space, became an overnight sensation that inspires creators into making their own similar original projects. It is not an idea that was copied, but it is an idea that was founded together by a community of people. Kane Pixels continues to show the true potential of his film-making as a young artist, and continues to make original projects such as “The Oldest View”, and “People Still Live Here”. Only time will tell what the future holds for the Backrooms but one thing will stand: it would have never been possible if it was not for the influence of a simple image.