SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
"Star Wars" bounty hunters Mandalorian and Grogu led the box office over this holiday weekend, but critic Bob Mondello says the film industry is buzzing about the film that came in second.
BOB MONDELLO, BYLINE: Hollywood is obsessed with "Obsession," a thriller about an extremely shy guy...
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "OBSESSION")
MICHAEL JOHNSTON: (As Bear) Nikki, wait. I was going to ask you, um...
INDE NAVARRETTE: (As Nikki) What?
JOHNSTON: (As Bear) Uh, I lost my train of thought.
MONDELLO: ...Who gets a friend to fall for him with a wish-granting willow branch...
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "OBSESSION")
JOHNSTON: (As Bear) I wish Nikki Freeman (ph) loved me more than anyone in the entire world.
MONDELLO: ...And then starts to wish he hadn't.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "OBSESSION")
NAVARRETTE: (As Nikki) I love you so, so, so, so, so much.
MONDELLO: Made by YouTuber and first-time studio filmmaker, Curry Barker, for about $750,000, "Obsession" was released 10 days ago in 2,600 theaters and has already scared up more than $62 million in ticket sales.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "OBSESSION")
NAVARRETTE: (As Nikki, screaming) I love you.
MONDELLO: In its first weekend, it came in third behind big studio hits, "Michael" and "The Devil Wears Prada 2." But word of mouth pushed it to first place on weekdays, and it stayed there until "Star Wars: Mandalorian And Grogu" opened on Friday.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "OBSESSION")
JOHNSTON: (As Bear) I was calling to see if there's a way I can cancel a wish.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: (As character) I'm sorry. We don't really do that.
MONDELLO: Then came the remarkable part. Most wide-release movies, especially horror films, see ticket sales decline their second weekends, often by more than half. Last year, it was considered astonishing when "Sinners" only dropped by 5%. But second weekend sales for "Obsession" went up by 39%. No horror film that's opened on more than 2,000 screens has ever seen an increase that big.
It's worth noting that the horror genre has been having a good run lately. Earlier this year, another YouTuber self-financed a fright fest called "Iron Lung," collecting more than $50 million on a spend of 3 million. Still, Barker's "Obsession" is in a league of its own. If you include overseas ticket sales, his studio debut will likely top $100 million before the start of its third weekend, making it one of Hollywood's lowest-cost to highest-earning movies ever. Understandably, its distributor has already signed on to release the first-time filmmaker's next feature. Bob Mondello, NPR News.
(SOUNDBITE OF ITZ60 SONG, "OBSESSED") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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