Backrooms – Movie Review (4/5)

BACKROOMS is a horror sci-fi movie based on a short film, which in turn was based on a 4chan Creepypasta. It’s weird and creepy… and very good. However, I will also acknowledge that it will not be for everyone. It is slowburn – until it isn’t. And it definitely stays with you. Read our full Backrooms horror movie review here!

BACKROOMS is a dark and creepy horror movie with a sci-fi mystery plot. The runtime of 110 minutes may feel long for some, but it is divided into a few storylines, which made it work extremely well for me. This movie is very much about a vibe and a mood, but it also has a plot and a storyline.

You may think this is to be expected, but not all horror movies do that. A movie like Skinamarink didn’t work for me because I needed more of an actual plot. Others loved it precisely because it focused so much on the tone and horror without explaining.

To each their own, I suppose, but this one lands in a good place.

Or, well, a place full of dread and horror, obviously.

But that’s exactly what I want from a horror sci-fi hybrid.

Continue reading our Backrooms horror movie review below. Find it in theaters nationwide from May 29, 2026.

A relentless and never-ending nightmare

The core plot of Backrooms is very simple: a strange doorway appears in the lower level of a furniture store, and a man goes through it. When he does, he enters a place that seems never-ending and extremely strange.

At first glance, it looks like an abandoned office building. Then you look closer, and everything is just slightly off. Then it’s more off and just gets weirder and stranger.

Much like a dream that may start out as almost mundane before turning into a nightmare. The kind where nothing makes sense, yet everything is terrifying, and you cannot find your way out.

We follow the man owning the furniture store, Clark (Chiwetel Ejiofor), and the therapist he’s seeing, Mary (Renate Reinsve). He’s seeing a therapist because his wife left him, and he clearly has quite a few issues. Or maybe he just prefers to be on his own. The jury is still out on that… sort of.

Meanwhile, the therapist also has a lot of trauma from her past, which we get introduced to in flashbacks.

Two main characters and a great supporting cast

These two characters come from very different backgrounds and have diverse approaches to this strange new place. However, what you go into the backrooms with doesn’t really matter. This place seems to have a mind of its own, and it’s ever-evolving and never-ending.

I love how we see them explore this strange new place in very different ways. Even understanding it differently. To me, Chiwetel Ejiofor (The Man Who Fell to Earth) and Renate Reinsve (Handling the Undead) deliver exactly what’s needed for their characters to work.

As the story plays out in 1990, we do have a video camera, but no smartphones or even the Internet. In other words, no easy way to record proof, do research, or get help.

Despite these two actors getting the most screentime, by far, we also have a few other key characters portrayed by amazing talent. From Finn Bennett (True Detective: Night Country) and Lukita Maxwell (Afraid) as Clark’s employees to Mark Duplass (The Creep Tapes) in a role I won’t reveal here.

Also in the movie are Katharine Isabelle (It’s a Wonderful Knife) and Avan Jogia (56 Days), but you may not even notice them. Oh yeah, Backrooms is that kind of movie.

Watch Backrooms in theaters… if you dare!

No, I don’t mean that as an actual dare, but Backrooms (to me, anyway) is the kind of movie that gets under your skin. And stays there. Or maybe, more accurately, I should say it’s a movie that gets stuck in your mind and subconscious as you keep thinking back on the weirdness and eerie creepiness of it. I love that!

While you may not know the director, any horror or genre fan will recognize several of the producer names. They include James Wan, Shawn Levy, and Osgood Perkins. To name just a few.

Backrooms comes from first-time feature film director Kane Parsons with the screenplay by Will Soodik (Westworld, Homeland, Ash vs. Evil Dead). He’s also known as “Kane Pixels” due to his very popular YouTube channel, which I highly recommend checking out.

WANT MORE BACKROOMS CREEPINESS?

Check out the Kane Pixel YouTube channel here >

His channel is full of amazing short films, including the short film (turned into a playlist series) that this feature-length film is based on. While I recognize that not all short films are made to be turned into a feature-length version, this one worked for me. Sure, it’s slow-burn and weird and eerie.

So is the short film – and the 4chan post the idea originates from, for that matter. It’s not for everyone, but it certainly is for me. If you like the short film (which you can watch from YouTube here), then you’ll want to check out the movie as well.

Backrooms is out in U.S. theaters on May 29, 2026. Also, it’s releasing in most countries worldwide in the same week.

Details

Director: Kane Parsons
Script: Will Soodik 
Based on the Series by: Kane Parsons
Cast: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, Mark Duplass, Finn Bennett, Lukita Maxwell

Watch the original Backrooms short film here: