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DIRECTOR KANE PARSONS' INDIE STORY BEGAN ON 4CHAN BEFORE SPREADING ON YOUTUBE AND BECOMING A MOVIE |
It’s the summer of surprises, and one in which studios are finally getting their arms around the lost YouTube generation. Chernin Entertainment, Blumhouse-Atomic Monster and A24’s thriftily-financed feature take of Kane Parsons’ IP Backrooms is looking to Force-choke Lucasfilm/Disney’s Star Wars: Mandalorian and Grogu for No. 1 this box office frame with a $40 million-$45 million domestic opening. That would rep the highest opening ever for an A24 movie, beating 2024’s Civil War ($25.5M).
For rabid fans of Parsons (online handle: Kane Pixel), who originally launched the IP on 4chan and spread it on Reddit, Backrooms is a dream come true in its big-screen arrival – a movie directed by the original creator. Parsons launched Backrooms when he was 16, establishing this universe of a man lost in myriad banal rooms filled with nightmarish people morphing into Roblox and Minecraft games.
The property grew into a found-footage YouTube series, created via Blender and Unreal Engine, that racked up 190 million views. Oscar nominees Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve star in the feature alongside Mark Duplass. >>>Critics Like It
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Deadline Exclusives & Originals
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Celine Dion: The Drama - A TV drama chronicling the early life of Céline Dion is in the works. Growing Up Dion [working title] marks the first time the “My Heart Will Go On” singer’s family has formally supported a dramatized adaptation of her childhood. >>>Brother Producing
Kelley Heading To 'Catalina' - David E. Kelley has set out to adapt another Michael Connelly crime novel for television, the 2024 bestseller Nightshade. The project, titled Welcome to Catalina, is in development at HBO Max. >>>'Pitt' Production Model
"Silence Gap" On UK Sets - The Talent Trust compiled a Set Culture Report about the welfare of those making British TV. Around 40% of those surveyed did not feel respected or treated with dignity on the production. Of those, more than three quarters didn’t feel they could speak up without worrying about unfair repercussions, hence a “silence gap.” >>>On Heels Of 'MAFS' Scandal
'Task' Emmy Plans - On HBO’s Task, Mark Ruffalo's FBI agent Tom Brandis and Tom Pelphrey‘s sanitation worker-turned-robber Robbie Prendergrast go toe to toe, but Ruffalo and Pelphrey will not be going head to head at the Emmys. >>>The Strategy
'Paranormal Activity' Meets AI - Steven Schneider has partnered with two AI production studios, Artlist and Secret Level, to develop a feature film titled Terrarium. Terrarium is currently in production and is written and directed by Jason Zada. >>>"Hybrid Horror" Feature
Picking From The 'Sidemenu' - The Sidemen continue to find innovative release strategies for their original shows. The British YouTube collective's Sidemen Productions is working up cooking competition series Sidemen Presents: Sidemenu, a four-part culinary competition series that will get an unusual staggered launch on both Prime Video and YouTube. >>>Debuts On MoreSidemen Channel
It Starts on the Page: 'Fallout': The Season 2 premiere episode of Prime Video‘s post-apocalyptic drama Fallout, “The Innovator” opens with an adrenaline-pumping battle scene but zooms in on the odd-couple dynamic of Lucy (Ella Purnell) and The Ghoul (Walton Goggins). Deadline's It Starts on the Page series continues its runup to the Emmys with a look at the episode's script, which was written by series creators, executive producers and co-showrunners Geneva Robertson-Dworet & Graham Wagner. >>>Read The Script
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Exclusive
In a highly anticipated casting for Season 2 of Netflix‘s Little House on the Prairie, Willa Dunn will play Nellie Oleson, one of the most recognizable antagonists from the original series. Dunn is joining the CBS Studios-produced adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s semi-autobiographical books as a series regular opposite series star Alice Halsey.
Exclusive
Ted Danson is joining Elizabeth Banks in the new Apple TV comedy series from creators Liz Heldens and Matt Ward. The series is set to begin production in Los Angeles this year.
Exclusive
Maggie Grace and Steve Howey are set to topline Fiona, a new horror film from Capstone Studios, based on the cult podcast Knifepoint Horror.
Exclusive
Ravi V. Patel has joined the cast of action-thriller Best Pancakes in the County, starring alongside Nicolas Cage, Justin Long and Shelley Hennig.
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MORE NEWS
🏆 The News & Documentary Emmy Awards were handed out Wednesday night and ABC, National Geographic and CBS were among the big winners.
📺 Joy Behar will take a little time to enjoy a different kind of view as she takes some time off from The View. Former The Talk co-host Sheryl Underwood and Kara Swisher will fill in for Behar.
💪 Alan Ritchson, the star and executive producer of Prime Video‘s hit series Reacher, has signed a three-year first-look television deal with the studio via his production banner, Dancing Skeleton.
🤖 Three animated series have received orders by Prime Video via the GenAI Creators’ Fund, a new joint initiative of Amazon Web Services and Amazon MGM Studios. The projects are Cupcake & Friends; Love, Diana Music Hunters and Punky Duck.
🤝 Allen Family Digital, an affiliate of Byron Allen’s family office, has closed its deal to acquire to acquire a majority stake in digital media company Buzzfeed with Byron Allen becoming chairman and CEO.
🔎 The Sherlock Holmes franchise continues its expansion with a modern reinvention series focusing on his arch nemesis James Moriarty. Fremantle and Operation Mincemeat producer Archery Pictures are collaborating on Moriarty [working title], which comes from writers Chris Cornwell and Oliver Lansley.
⚽ Gersh has launched a soccer agency after buying UK outfit PLG, merging it with You First Football, which it bought in 2024. The new agency, called Gersh Football, will rep the likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jarrod Bowen, Fabián Ruiz, Alexia Putellas and Christoph Baumgartner.
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OBITUARIES
🕯️ French actor Pierre Deny, who was best known internationally for his role in Netflix hit Emily in Paris, has died at the age of 69. 🕯️ Charles Cioffi, a prolific character actor in TV, film and the Broadway stage perhaps best known for memorable turns as Tom Cruise’s blue-collar dad in All the Right Moves and a sadistic killer stalking Jane Fonda in Klute, died May 22 of natural causes at his home in Marina del Rey, California. He was 90. 🕯️ John McClain, the veteran music executive who served as a co-executor for the Michael Jackson estate, has died. He was 71. 🕯️ 2026 Passings Gallery
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ON THE RADAR
Thu - ATX Festival begins
Sat - Deadline Contenders TV: Doc + Unscripted; Produced By conference
Mon - SXSW London begins
Tue - CA primary election
Wed - 25th Tribeca Festival begins
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'Suitable' Attire - Mindy Kaling arrives for Hulu's Not Suitable For Work advanced screening and conversation at 92NY.
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