Blumhouse’s upcoming horror Obsession is a bloody mess, especially after this gory scene.
The horror Obsession has a near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes score of 97%, and is directed by Curry Barker, known for The Chair and Warnings. After breaking the mysterious “One Wish Willow” to win his crush’s heart, a hopeless romantic gets exactly what he asked for. However, the price he has to pay comes at a disturbing and sinister price. The official release date for the horror is May 15.
In an interview with Deadline, Barker shared his experience showing his film at TIFF and then SXSW. The movie had to undergo some changes after its debut in Toronto. Obsession is a horror that features an intense and rather gory scene involving six or seven head smashes. Unfortunately, due to an age restriction rating, Barker made the decision to edit the bloody scene down in order to reach a wider audience.
“There were about six or seven more smashes. And we were getting an NC-17 rating. And so they were like, you’ve got to take out some of the smashes. And I was like, I’m not taking out a single bash. But I did.”
However, it’s not all doom and gloom as the director still states that the scene is “really f**king hardcore.” According to Barker, he stated that he would “watch from the back of the theater and the way everyone reacted — whatever the number is now, it’s the right number.” Despite having to tone the scene down, it seems that the overall consensus is still shock, and it still carries the same weight.
The cast of Obsession includes Michael Johnston, Inde Navarrette, Cooper Tomlinson, Megan Lawless, and Andy Richter. Focus Features acquired the film after TIFF, which is reported to have made over $15 million. The movie has already had incredible reviews, which state that Barker is certainly making a name for himself within the horror genre, and Obsession is “a new modern horror masterpiece.”
Johnston is known for his role as Corey Bryant in the hit supernatural series Teen Wolf and has also lent his voice to several projects, including God of War: Sons of Sparta, Demon Slayer: Sweep the Board, and Well-Versed. His role in Obsession is the main character, Bear, who ends up attempting to win the attention of Nikki (played by Navarrette), but as seen in the trailer, in typical horror fashion, usually what you wish for isn’t what you get.
Obsession will be released on May 15.
Release Date
May 15, 2026
Runtime
108 minutes
Director
Curry Barker
Writers
Curry Barker
Producers
Christian Mercuri, James Harris, Mark Lane, Roman Viaris