A24’s Backrooms, the highest-grossing film in the studio’s history, is coming to HBO Max. The hit horror movie will begin streaming exclusively on the service in the U.S. on September 25, 2026. The film will also make its HBO linear debut the following day, airing Saturday, September 26 at 8:00 p.m. ET.
Directed by Kane Parsons and written by Will Soodik, Backrooms has become one of 2026’s biggest horror success stories. The film has earned approximately $367 million worldwide, an impressive result for a movie based on a viral YouTube horror phenomenon and directed by a filmmaker making his feature debut.
What is Backrooms about?
Based on Parsons’ hugely popular Kane Pixels YouTube series, Backrooms follows Clark, played by Chiwetel Ejiofor, the owner of a discount furniture store who discovers a strange doorway hidden inside his business. The doorway leads to an endless maze of interconnected rooms where the rules of reality no longer seem to apply. As Clark ventures deeper into the labyrinth, he encounters increasingly disturbing sights and the possibility that something else is lurking inside.
The official synopsis describes the story this way: A strange doorway appears in the basement of a furniture showroom, leading to an endless network of interconnected rooms where time bends and the only thing scarier than getting lost is the sense that something is waiting.
The cast includes Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, Mark Duplass, Finn Bennett, and Lukita Maxwell.
Parsons first began releasing Backrooms videos on YouTube in 2022. The series went viral, eventually accumulating more than 190 million views and turning the Backrooms creepypasta into one of the internet’s most recognizable horror concepts. Parsons was only 20 years old when he directed the feature film.
JoBlo’s Backrooms review
Chris Bumbray gave Backrooms a 7/10 in his JoBlo review, calling it an “eerie exercise in liminal horror.” Bumbray praised Parsons’ ability to translate the strange atmosphere of the Backrooms into a feature-length movie, particularly the environments filled with ugly yellow fluorescent lights, seemingly endless corridors, and staircases that lead nowhere.
He also highlighted the performances from Ejiofor and Reinsve, while noting that the Backrooms themselves may be the movie’s biggest stars.
The review’s main criticisms involved the film’s pacing and 105-minute runtime, as well as the fact that Bumbray did not find the movie particularly frightening. Still, he was interested in seeing where a possible sequel could take the mythology.
Backrooms is already available at home
The HBO Max premiere isn’t actually the movie’s first home-video release. Backrooms became available to rent or buy digitally on July 14, allowing viewers to watch the film at home shortly after its theatrical run.
A24 is also releasing exclusive 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray editions through the A24 Shop. The physical releases include nearly three hours of bonus material, including the previously theatrical-exclusive “Everything Must Go” footage. Other extras include an audio commentary featuring Parsons and members of the film’s creative team, a Building the Backrooms featurette, visual-effects breakdowns, a prop walkthrough, and six collectible postcards.
For those who haven’t ventured into the Backrooms yet, the HBO Max premiere provides another chance to see why this internet horror phenomenon became one of the year’s biggest theatrical hits. Will you be watching when Backrooms starts streaming? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
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