Obsession is a 2026 American supernatural horror film written, directed and edited by Curry Barker, in his feature directorial debut. Produced by James Harris, Haley Nicole Johnson, Christian Mercuri and Roman Viaris, and distributed by Focus Features, it is loosely inspired by the classic “monkey’s paw” story and follows a young man whose wish for love turns into a nightmare. The film stars Michael Johnston, Inde Navarrette, Cooper Tomlinson, Megan Lawless and Andy Richter.

Obsession premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on 5 September 2025 and was released in theatres in the United States on 15 May 2026, followed by India on 29 May 2026. Made on a reported budget of under $1 million, the film became one of the most profitable horror releases in years, earning more than $400 million worldwide. It received largely positive reviews from critics for its blend of dark comedy and genuine dread, and it became one of the biggest surprise hits of 2026 both internationally and in India.

Obsession – Movie Details

Category	Details
Movie Name	Obsession
Release Date	15 May 2026 (USA); 29 May 2026 (India)
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre	Supernatural Horror, Psychological Thriller
Director	Curry Barker
Lead Cast	Michael Johnston, Inde Navarrette, Cooper Tomlinson
Supporting Cast	Megan Lawless, Andy Richter, Haley Fitzgerald, Darin Toonder
Production Companies	Focus Features
Runtime	About 108–109 minutes
Certification	R (USA), U/A 13 (India)
Estimated Budget	About $750,000 to $1 million
Box Office Collection	Over $400 million worldwide
Based On	Inspired by “The Monkey’s Paw” by W. W. Jacobs

Plot

Obsession follows Baron “Bear” Bailey, a shy employee at a music store who has long harboured romantic feelings for his childhood friend and co-worker Nikki Freeman. Unable to tell her how he feels, Bear buys a strange trinket called the One Wish Willow, believing it to be a harmless novelty gift. After Nikki confronts him about whether he likes her and he denies it out of panic, a furious and desperate Bear snaps the willow himself and makes a wish: that Nikki will love him more than anyone else in the world.

The wish appears to come true almost immediately, but Bear soon realises that something about Nikki has changed. Her affection becomes obsessive and her behaviour grows increasingly disturbing, including an unsettling response to the death of Bear’s cat. When Bear searches for answers online and calls the One Wish Willow’s customer service line, he learns the wish’s dark catch: it can only be undone if he or Nikki dies. As Nikki’s fixation spirals out of control and the people around Bear become targets of her obsession, he is forced to confront the consequences of what he has unleashed.

Unlike a conventional creature-feature horror film, Obsession is built around a single cursed object and a two-person relationship at its centre. The film continues the “be careful what you wish for” tradition of stories like “The Monkey’s Paw”, and its central narrative revolves around the line between love and control, and the price of getting exactly what you asked for. Curry Barker’s background in comedy shapes much of the film’s tone, which shifts between awkward humour and genuine dread as the story escalates.

Main Cast and Characters

Michael Johnston as Baron “Bear” Bailey: Bear is a music store employee whose unspoken feelings for Nikki lead him to use the One Wish Willow. Johnston plays him as an awkward, relatable romantic whose questionable choices still keep the audience on his side, and his performance anchors the film’s shift from comedy to horror.

Inde Navarrette as Nikki Freeman: Nikki is Bear’s childhood friend and co-worker, whose life is transformed by his wish. Navarrette’s performance carries much of the film’s unease, as Nikki’s devotion curdles into something frightening.

Cooper Tomlinson as Ian: Ian is a friend who grows suspicious of Bear and confronts him about his treatment of Nikki. Tomlinson is a real-life friend and creative collaborator of director Curry Barker, and the two make comic videos together online.

Megan Lawless as Sarah Harper: Sarah is a character connected to the film’s central household and becomes caught up in the escalating danger around Bear and Nikki.

Andy Richter as Carter Harper: Carter is Bear’s boss at the music store and Sarah’s husband. Richter, known for his work alongside Conan O’Brien, brings his comic experience to the role.

Haley Fitzgerald as Viola and Darin Toonder as Harry: Both appear in supporting roles connected to the film’s small cast of characters.

Curry Barker himself provides the voice of the indifferent customer service representative on the One Wish Willow’s helpline, a recurring comic element in the film.

Production, Creative and Technical Aspects

Development and Story

Obsession was written, directed and edited by Curry Barker, who was 25 at the time of filming and had previously built an online following making comedy and horror shorts on YouTube with his creative partner Cooper Tomlinson. It is Barker’s feature directorial debut, following an earlier project called The Chair, and his path to filmmaking has drawn comparisons to other YouTube-to-horror directors such as the Philippou brothers of Talk to Me.

The story was inspired by W. W. Jacobs’s classic short story “The Monkey’s Paw”, reimagined by Barker for a modern setting with a one-sided romance at its centre instead of the original’s family tragedy. Barker has said he wanted to explore how a seemingly playful wish-gone-wrong premise could become a sharp look at fixation and control. The film is an original screenplay and is not based on any existing novel.

Casting and Characters

Michael Johnston and Inde Navarrette were cast in the lead roles of Bear and Nikki, with Cooper Tomlinson, Megan Lawless and Andy Richter rounding out the main supporting cast. Barker cast his frequent collaborator Tomlinson in a role connected to the story’s central conflict, while Richter brought established comic credibility to the ensemble. The cast’s relative lack of major star power before the film’s release became part of its underdog appeal once Obsession became a surprise hit.

Filming and Production

Obsession was made on a reported budget of under $1 million, a remarkably small figure for a film that would go on to earn hundreds of millions of dollars worldwide. Barker designed the film’s central prop, the One Wish Willow, together with his mother, who works as a graphic art designer. Reshoots were later carried out to add a new opening sequence and a confrontation scene involving a haircut, which helped clarify why Bear hesitates to undo his wish once he understands its consequences.

Production Companies

The film was produced by James Harris, Haley Nicole Johnson, Christian Mercuri and Roman Viaris, and distributed worldwide by Focus Features. Its tiny budget and resulting box office performance made it one of the most profitable films of 2026 by return on investment, and its success has been widely discussed in the industry as evidence that low-budget original horror can still draw large theatrical audiences.

Music and Background Score

The film’s score supports its shifts between dark comedy and dread, reinforcing the growing unease around Bear and Nikki’s relationship as the story escalates. In a horror film built around a single cursed object and an increasingly unstable central relationship, music plays an important role in signalling when a scene is meant to unsettle rather than amuse. Subtle scoring during the film’s quieter, more intimate scenes heightens anticipation, while louder passages emphasise its more violent sequences.

Cinematography and Editing

Curry Barker edited the film himself in addition to writing and directing it, giving him close control over its pacing and tonal shifts. The visual style keeps much of the story contained to a small number of locations, including the music store and Bear’s home, which suits the film’s low budget while keeping the tension focused on the characters. Critics have noted that the screenplay is full of loaded lines and sharp observations, and that the film’s success depends heavily on its performances carrying the story’s emotional weirdness before the horror fully takes hold.

Significance of the Film’s Success

Obsession’s journey from a shoestring-budget festival title to a major global hit is one of the most notable stories of the 2026 box office. After premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2025, the film built strong word-of-mouth ahead of its wide theatrical release in May 2026. Its box office performance against a budget of under $1 million made it one of the standout success stories of the year, and it drew comparisons to other breakout horror hits for its mix of social commentary, dark comedy and violence.

Release Date and Theatrical Distribution

Obsession Release Details

Detail	Information
Film Title	Obsession
World Premiere	5 September 2025, Toronto International Film Festival
Release Date in USA	15 May 2026
Release Date in India	29 May 2026
Release Date in Australia	14 May 2026
Certification	R (USA), U/A 13 (India)
Production Companies	Focus Features
Theatrical Distribution	Focus Features (USA and international)
Languages in India	English
OTT Release Date (USA)	17 July 2026, on Peacock
OTT Release Date (India)	Not officially confirmed

Official Release Date

Obsession was released in theatres in the United States on 15 May 2026, after premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2025. It opened in India two weeks later, on 29 May 2026, and in Australia slightly earlier, on 14 May 2026. The film’s slow-building word of mouth meant that its audience and box office numbers grew steadily over several weeks, rather than peaking on its opening weekend as most major releases do.

Worldwide Theatrical Release

The film received a wide international theatrical release following its strong performance in North America. It opened across multiple overseas markets, including India and Australia, in the weeks after its United States debut. Distributor Focus Features expanded the film’s release as word of mouth grew, and Obsession went on to become one of the most profitable wide releases of the year relative to its tiny production budget.

Certification and Runtime

In the United States, the film is rated R. In India, the Central Board of Film Certification granted it a U/A 13 certificate, a rating that allowed younger audiences to watch the film in theatres while still carrying an age-based caution. Before granting that certificate, the CBFC required approximately 38 seconds of cuts, trimming scenes involving sex and violence. Some viewers in India said the edits altered important parts of the story, including scenes connected to Nikki’s loss of autonomy and the consequences of Bear’s wish, which led to online discussion about the cuts. The runtime is reported as about 108 to 109 minutes, or roughly one hour and 48 minutes.

Theatrical Formats and Presentation

The film was released in standard theatrical formats in both the United States and India, without the large-format or premium releases typical of big-budget blockbusters. Its growth came mostly from steady, expanding word of mouth rather than a reliance on premium screens, and it continued to add shows and screens in India as its reputation grew over its run.

Significance of the Release

The release of Obsession stands out for the scale of its success relative to its minuscule budget. In the United States, it became one of the biggest original horror hits of the year, and in India it eventually became the highest-grossing Hollywood film of 2026, ahead of bigger-budget releases. Its unusually long theatrical run, extending for well over a month in India, delayed its planned digital release more than once as distributors continued to capitalise on its strong theatrical performance.

OTT Release and Streaming Availability

In the United States, Obsession became available to stream exclusively on Peacock from 17 July 2026. Its digital release had originally been expected earlier, around 2 June 2026, and later around 30 June on premium video-on-demand, but the studio delayed the release more than once because of the film’s continued strength in theatres.

An official OTT release date and streaming platform for India have not been confirmed in the information available here. A digital premiere in India would typically follow the theatrical run, but its timing depends on the film’s distribution agreements and the streaming partner’s announcement. Until an authorised platform confirms the details, a specific Indian OTT date or service should not be presented as final. This section can be updated once an official announcement identifies the streaming platform and digital release date in India.

Budget and Box Office Collection

Obsession Budget and Box Office

Box Office Detail	Reported Figures
Estimated Production Budget	About $750,000 to $1 million
Release Date	15 May 2026 (USA), 29 May 2026 (India)
North America Collection	Over $250 million
Worldwide Gross Collection	Over $400 million (some reports cite over $425 million)
Opening Day Collection (India Net)	About ₹1.50 crore
Opening Weekend Collection (India Net)	About ₹7.46 crore
First Week Collection (India Net)	About ₹18.55 crore
India Net Collection	About ₹84.90 crore (after five weeks)
India Gross Collection	About ₹100.96 crore

Production Budget

The reported budget of Obsession is extraordinarily small for a wide theatrical release, at somewhere between $750,000 and $1 million. This makes its box office performance, with worldwide earnings well over $400 million, one of the highest return-on-investment stories in recent horror cinema. The production budget covers expenses associated with filming, cast and crew, the small number of locations and post-production, while the wider marketing cost is not separately reported. These amounts are industry estimates rather than publicly audited figures, and the film’s commercial performance is widely described as extraordinary given how little it cost to make.

Opening Day Box Office Collection

Obsession opened quietly in India on 29 May 2026, with a first-day net collection of about ₹1.50 crore. The opening weekend showed unusually strong growth rather than the typical pattern of a front-loaded debut, with Saturday collections jumping by around 80% to about ₹2.75 crore and Sunday adding a further 16% to reach about ₹3.21 crore, bringing the opening weekend total to roughly ₹7.46 crore net. In the United States, the film had already built strong momentum by the time of its India release, having crossed over $105 million domestically within its first weeks.

First Week Box Office Collection

During its first week in India, the film continued to build rather than decline, which is unusual for a horror release. The first week closed at approximately ₹18.55 crore net, and the film then accelerated sharply, nearly doubling its pace in its second week with about ₹31.25 crore, before adding roughly ₹22 crore in its third week, a total higher than its opening week. By its fourth weekend, the film had overtaken other major 2026 Hollywood releases in India, including Project Hail Mary, Michael, The Devil Wears Prada 2 and The Mummy, to become the year’s biggest Hollywood earner in the country at that point. Actual totals may vary according to reporting cut-off times, revisions and the methodology used by individual box-office trackers.

India Net and Gross Collection

By the end of its fifth weekend in Indian cinemas, reports placed the film’s India net collection at approximately ₹84.90 crore and its India gross collection at around ₹100.96 crore, an unusually large total for a horror film in India. India net refers to ticket revenue after tax deductions, whereas India gross represents ticket revenue before those deductions. These figures measure different aspects of box-office performance and should not be treated as interchangeable. The film’s unusually long and steady run in India, stretching well beyond a month, is a significant part of why its final numbers are so far above what a typical horror release achieves domestically.

Overseas and Worldwide Collection

Globally, Obsession had crossed roughly $370 million within its first weeks of release against a production budget of under $1 million, and worldwide earnings later climbed past $400 million, with some reports citing figures above $425 million. North American earnings alone surpassed $250 million. Combining its earnings from North America, India and other international markets, the film stands as one of the most profitable wide theatrical releases of the year relative to its cost. Different publications may report slightly different totals because of variations in reporting periods and collection estimates. Worldwide gross revenue should not be confused with the amount ultimately received by the producers or distributors.

Ratings, Reviews and Audience Reception

Rating Platform	Rating / Review
IMDb	About 7.7/10
Rotten Tomatoes	About 97%
Metacritic	About 83/100
Critics’ Star Ratings	Mostly 3 to 4 out of 5
Audience Reviews	Largely positive, with strong word-of-mouth driving its box office run

Ratings and review availability should be verified against current listings before publication, as scores and audience votes can change.

IMDb Rating and User Reviews

Obsession has an IMDb rating of about 7.7/10 in the available listing. Viewers have shown strong interest in the film’s premise, its central performances and its mix of dark comedy and horror. Audience discussions frequently focus on Michael Johnston and Inde Navarrette’s performances, the design of the One Wish Willow prop and the film’s unsettling final act. IMDb ratings can change as more users submit votes, so the score should be treated as a snapshot rather than a permanent rating.

Critics Reviews and Overall Reception

Critics generally praised the film’s sharp screenplay, its performances and its willingness to push an uncomfortable premise further than expected. One review awarded the film four out of five stars, describing it as a surprisingly impactful exploration of fixation and arguing that love without reciprocation can curdle into a kind of ownership, something it said the film understands better than most horror films dare to. Another review, awarded three stars, described the film as a promising start to a directing career, noting that beneath its surface lies a story about Bear taking control of Nikki’s life and replacing her true self with the product of his wish, while also flagging its flaws.

Several reviewers highlighted the film’s tonal balance between cringe comedy and genuine dread, and its debt to the “monkey’s paw” tradition of cursed-wish stories. Comparisons to films such as Barbarian were common, both for the way the story escalates and for its examination of consent and control within a seemingly ordinary relationship. Taken together, professional reviews and audience feedback offer different perspectives on the film’s strengths and weaknesses, though the overall critical and audience response has been unusually positive for a horror release made on such a small budget.

Obsession Movie Review: What Works and What Does Not

What works: The film’s central idea, built around the simple but effective “monkey’s paw” premise of the One Wish Willow, gives it a tight, focused structure. Michael Johnston and Inde Navarrette carry the film’s shifting tone, moving convincingly between awkward comedy and genuine horror as Bear’s wish spirals out of control. The screenplay is sharp, and the film’s small scale works in its favour, keeping the tension concentrated on its central relationship rather than spreading it across a larger cast or world.

What does not: Some reviewers felt that the film’s low budget and tight scope limit how far its world-building can go, and that certain plot turns, particularly around the customer service subplot, lean on dark comedy that not every viewer will find equally effective. The Indian theatrical cut, trimmed by the CBFC, was criticised by some viewers for softening two of the film’s most important ideas. Overall, Obsession is a sharp, effective piece of low-budget horror that rewards viewers willing to sit with its uncomfortable themes, and its unprecedented commercial success is matched by a genuinely strong critical reception.

Where to Watch Obsession

Obsession’s theatrical run in India extended well beyond a month, but availability may now be limited as the film’s run winds down. In the United States, the film has been streaming exclusively on Peacock since 17 July 2026. Its current availability may vary by country and platform, so viewers should check listings before planning to watch. The following options can be used to find it:

• Peacock: The film is available exclusively on the service in the United States.
• BookMyShow and District: Check these platforms for any remaining theatrical screenings in India.
• Digital stores: Check major digital stores in your country for rental and purchase options, as a premium video-on-demand release has also been reported.
• JustWatch: Use the streaming guide to see which services currently list the film in your country.

Availability depends on the country, platform and current licensing agreements. These links lead to the platforms’ main websites; search for the film there to confirm whether it is available. The official Indian OTT platform and release date should be added to this section once announced.

Is Obsession Worth Watching?

Obsession is worth considering for viewers who enjoy supernatural horror, dark comedy and stories built around a single, escalating premise. Michael Johnston and Inde Navarrette lead a small, focused cast, and the film’s main appeal lies in its sharp writing, its unsettling central relationship and the question of how far Bear will go to undo a wish he can no longer control. Fans of cursed-object horror stories and low-budget breakout hits may find its success story as interesting as the film itself. However, the Indian theatrical cut includes CBFC-mandated trims that some viewers felt affected the story, and viewers sensitive to themes of obsession, control and violence should be aware of the film’s R rating in the United States. Overall, it is worth considering for fans of smart, character-driven horror, and its critical acclaim alongside its commercial success make it one of the standout genre films of 2026.

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