A24’s ‘Backrooms’ trailer drops, expands viral horror universe

 

A24 is stepping into familiar internet territory, but doing it on a much bigger scale. The studio has released the first teaser for Backrooms, a feature adaptation of the viral YouTube series created by filmmaker Kane Parsons — and the tone is exactly as unsettling as longtime viewers would expect.

The trailer itself doesn’t rely on traditional horror beats. There are no quick jump scares, no heavy exposition. Instead, it leans into atmosphere, a drifting camera moves through a maze of empty, yellow-lit rooms that seem to stretch endlessly, each space more disorienting than the last. It feels quiet at first, almost too quiet, before the sense of something being wrong starts to creep in.

That’s been the core of Backrooms from the beginning. Kane Parsons built a massive following online by turning a simple concept into something deeply unsettling — an endless, liminal space that feels both familiar and completely off.

The original videos didn’t explain much, and that ambiguity became part of the appeal. This film looks like it’s keeping that same energy, just with a bigger canvas.

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The idea itself traces back to a viral image that circulated years ago — a strangely empty room with harsh lighting and no clear purpose. From there, internet lore took over, evolving into the concept of the “backrooms,” a kind of alternate dimension made up of endless, repetitive spaces. Kane Parsons expanded that into a full narrative through his series, and now A24 is bringing it into the feature film space without losing its original identity.

What’s interesting is how restrained the teaser feels, even with a larger production behind it. There’s very little focus on the cast at this stage, despite names like Renate Reinsve, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Mark Duplass, and Lukita Maxwell attached to the project. The emphasis is clearly on the environment — the space itself almost feels like the main character.

And that might be the smartest move. The strength of Backrooms has always been in its simplicity, the way it lets viewers sit with discomfort rather than spelling everything out. The teaser suggests the film isn’t trying to over-explain that world. If anything, it looks like it’s doubling down on the unease.