Obsession is a horror movie that has taken the world by storm, even surpassing Avengers: Endgame in one key way. It only came out in May, but Inde Navarrette's Nikki has become an icon in the genre, permeating every corner of today's culture. It's a testament not only to her performance but also to the direction of director Curry Barker, a YouTuber whose evolution has led him and his friend, Obsession star and associate producer Cooper Tomlinson, to create successful feature-length films.
Obsession follows Michael Johnston's Bear, a cowardly man unable to confront his crush on his longtime friend, Inde Navarrette's Nikki. After unknowingly getting a magic wishing stick, called The One Wish Willow, Bear makes a wish for Nikki to love him more than anything else in the world. It works, but needless to say, not as intended. The story that follows is chilling and unfortunate for everyone involved.
While Bear and Nikki's relationship is the core of the movie, the story drops a little nugget of information, thanks to Megan Lawless' Sarah: Cooper Tomlinson's Ian had been hooking up with Nikki off-screen before the movie's events. This information isn't elaborated on, but it has led to speculation about what their relationship really was.
Thankfully, The Direct sat down with Obsession star Cooper Tomlinson for an interview, where we asked him exactly what was going on there.
The star revealed that he believes "Ian liked Nikki more than she liked [him]," meaning their situation was never going to be a love story. In many ways, it mirrors Bear's story, though all evidence points to Ian having no problem admitting his feelings to Nikki if he needed to.
Tomlinson also commented on whether Ian is a good friend to Bear in the movie, admitting he doesn't think so. While "he has his moments," Ian "sets up Bear in a bad way, and it really changes Bear's trajectory as a character." The actor speculated that if Ian had given his friend some different advice, then perhaps everything would have played out differently.
More of The Direct's interview with Obsession star Cooper Tomlinson can be read below. For those wanting to experience Curry Barker's twisted horror story again, the movie is available on physical media and digitally on demand.
Obsession Star Reveals if Nikki Loved Ian
Bear Had No Idea His Best Friend Harbored Similar Feelings.
- The Direct: "Would you say Ian is a good friend or not at all?"
Cooper Tomlinson: No. I think he has his moments, you know, but no, he's not. I actually think he sets up this movie, and you know, he sets up Bear in a bad way, and it really changes Bear's trajectory as a character... If Ian had given his friend honest advice... what way would it have gone? Would he have made the wish? Would he tell her that he really liked her? Where would that go? You know, it's very interesting.
The actor noted that not only is everybody in the movie flawed, but each character is also harboring their own secrets.
Tomlinson: I think everybody has a flaw. Everybody's got a secret in this movie. That's the problem with this friend group... They're not honest with each other, they're not honest with themselves, and you know, and as great as Sarah is, and she's so innocent, did not deserve what she got, [but] she was also harboring her own secrets.
- The Direct: "Speaking of secrets, it is revealed that Ian and Nikki are hooking up, or were hooking up, but it's never really elaborated on. Do you feel that those were just casual hookups, or, if this movie didn't happen, would that have maybe led to something like an actual, substantial relationship?"
Tomlinson: I think Ian liked Nikki more than she liked [him]. It was just casual, but he obviously cared about her, and as you can see, you know, in the moment before he makes the wish, like he is really worried about her. Not because he likes her too, but he, I think, you know, he just cares for his friend at the end of the day.
- The Direct: "You recently revealed that you actually did technically play Bear in some test footage. Will we ever see that?"
Tomlinson: Yeah, I think you will. Maybe we'll drop it at some point. It depends on who's cool with that. We did a test, just as test footage, to try out the scene. We like to do that, like we just like to shoot things, that's how we came up. So, Curry [Barker] was like, I want to play around with the whole scene at the door when he makes the wish in the car. We hired an actress, we had a little crew, and we shot it where we shot 'The Chair.' If you've seen 'The Chair,' we shot it at the same house, which is where I lived at the time. And yeah, it was fun. It was cool to just play that guy, but Michael [Johnston] just kills it...
The Direct's full interview with Obsession's Cooper Tomlinson is available below:
