Backrooms is getting a surprising new version in theaters and it comes with 16 minutes of extra footage. Kane Parsons' feature directorial debut has been smashing box office records since its release on May 29, and the franchise, which started as a YouTube series, has amassed a whole new following. A24 recently confirmed that Backrooms would receive an extended cut releasing in cinemas, but it hasn't been revealed what the extra footage will entail.
Parsons hinted at what fans will see if they return to the cinemas for the Backrooms - Everything Must Go extended cut on Discord (via @KaneHypeGuy). The director shared that the added 16 minutes is "not bts (behind the scenes) content" and "nor is it a re-edit of the film." After ruling out these two possibilities, Parsons added: "I think those who were hoping for more [YouTube] episodes will be into it."
Backrooms began as a viral creepypasta featuring an image of a barren, architecturally strange hallway. Parsons used this image as the foundation for his YouTube web series, which spanned 24 found-footage-style episodes and amassed nearly 200 million views. The concept involved a corporation known as Async attempting to charter the liminal space known as the Backrooms and encountering horrific horrors within.
Backrooms took a similar approach in the feature film, taking things from the perspective of a furniture store owner, Clark (Chiwetel Ejiofor), and a therapist, Mary (Renate Reinsve).
Questions have been rampant since A24 confirmed the extended cut would run 16 minutes longer, but provided no further details on what that might mean. The studio released a trailer for the Backrooms - Everything Must Go edition, but it doesn't include any of the additional footage, keeping it a complete surprise until audiences see it in cinemas.
Extended film releases can vary in what they include. Some will feature documentary or making-of-style content; others may focus on a director's cut with additional footage, which is sometimes done to smooth over plot holes or restore character subplots in response to public reception after release.
However, Parsons comments seem to suggest Backrooms - Everything Must Go will fit into neither of these categories, as he confirmed the 16 minutes of new footage would not be behind-the-scenes content, or a re-edit.
Backrooms - Everything Must Go edition will be released in cinemas on Friday, July 3rd. The movie stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, Mark Duplass, and Avan Jogia.
Backrooms’ Extended Cut Is Returning to Its YouTube Roots
Backrooms gained a passionate online fanbase over the web series' three-year run. With Parsons moving things to the feature-film format, Backrooms, by nature, lost some of the charm that came from the low-budget storytelling of the series, as it moved from a found-footage tale to a major big-screen experience.
In particular, much of the web series focused on Async as a company and its goals for the Backrooms, with its employees delving into the liminal space to map and clear it. But in the movie, there was very little time spent with Mark Duplass' Phil, the Async scientist, or Avan Jogia's Naren Warne, the researcher whose demise is shown in the opening.
Parsons' hint that the additional footage in Backrooms - Everything Must Go will please fans of the YouTube series suggests the extra content could be packaged like an additional episode of the web series, which could shed more light on Async's role within the film.
The, admittedly very short, trailer for the extended edition also focuses heavily on Duplass' character and the opening following the Async research expedition, which could be a hint that this is what the additional footage will expand upon.
Backrooms certainly left viewers with their share of questions about Async, the liminal space's creepy still-life creatures, and what happens next to Mary, but if the additional content in the extended edition is anything like the web series, they may not come away with any more answers.
