The Sam and Colby channel is the spookiest sensation on YouTube, and now it’s coming to theaters.
The relentless thrill-seeker knows YouTube is the place to be. On the fringes of Hollywood and the more traditional realm of streaming, independent creators are finding radical and unusual ways to scare people. Mainstream producers have taken notice, often adopting insights that emerge from such fringes. But, dear readers, there’s still much left to discover.
From YouTube to the big screen. It’s been an unusual few weeks at the box office. Joker: Folie à Deux, a B-movie that’s not for everyone, climbed to the top, and at least five animated films shared space in the Top 10. Despite being shown in only 350 theaters worldwide, the documentary Sam and Colby: The Legends of the Paranormal ranked as the sixth most-watched movie of the weekend. It’s a significant milestone at the box office, but not surprising given that Sam and Colby are two of the most famous paranormal YouTubers.
Who are Sam and Colby? They started their paranormal video blog in 2014 and have since amassed 13 million followers. One of their most popular videos, a visit to the Stanley Hotel (one of the inspirations for The Shining), has garnered 43 million views. They’ve also explored the Queen Mary and the house that inspired The Conjuring series. These videos are feature-length, typically running between an hour and a half to two hours.
Why a movie? While Sam and Colby produce various content, including talk shows and reaction videos, their major episodes are feature-length. Every October, leading up to Halloween, they celebrate “Hell Week,” releasing the longest episode of the season. Since last year, Cinemark has been distributing these special episodes in theaters.
In 2023, Cinemark screened their documentary on the house that inspired The Conjuring series. This year’s The Legends of the Paranormal is being screened in twice the number of theaters and exponentially increased box office returns, grossing $176 million—a figure higher than Deadpool & Wolverine, The Substance, and Megalopolis.
YouTube horror. Horror on YouTube has a long tradition, with its greatest incubation coming from the rise of analog horror. This audiovisual style is considered a distant descendant of The Blair Witch Project, combined with the influence of creepypasta stories that once populated the darker corners of Internet forums. From this fusion, iconic creations emerged, known for their eerie visuals and VHS textures, such as Local58TV, the short film Backrooms Found Footage (which launched its own subgenre, The Backrooms), The Mandela Catalogue, Marble Hornets, and the fake ad BLUE_CHANNEL: THALASIN. Blend all this with the dialectics of social media platforms and the tradition of supernatural reality, and you get creators like Sam and Colby.
A talent pipeline. YouTube hasn’t just delivered ideas and one-off hits to Hollywood. The platform has also produced creators with experience in short-form storytelling, constant exposure, and direct influence on the platform. One of the genre’s recent hits, Talk to Me, was directed by Danny and Michael Philippou, known as RackaRacka on YouTube, where they have 6.86 million subscribers. The film became the third highest-grossing movie for A24, a company specializing in intense horror and the discovery of new talent.
Scaring young audiences. As mentioned earlier, The Backrooms has grown into a popular mythology, and A24 recruited young filmmaker Ken Parsons to create a movie based on it. He’s not alone—Curry Baker, known for his terrifying short Milk & Serial and other amateur horror productions, is also set to make his first feature film. In addition, YouTube critic Chris Stuckmann, a specialist in fantasy and horror films, will make his directorial debut with Shelby Oaks, which has secured international distribution. Analog and low-budget horror is entering a new golden age.
Image | Sam and Colby
See all comments on https://www.xatakaon.com
SEE 0 Comment