I Watched the Robin Williams Thriller That Inspired the Backrooms and the Similarities Are Uncanny

Image: Fox Searchlight

Following the massive box-office success of Obsession, the horror feature Backrooms has shattered records, securing the strongest opening weekend ever for an original horror property. The film follows a disillusioned, solitary furniture store owner who stumbles upon a mysterious, hidden passageway beneath his shop. Crossing the threshold reveals an infinite, labyrinthine office landscape filled with distorted, familiar objects and a lurking, incomprehensible menace.

While the film is rooted in the internet-famous “Backrooms” creepypasta—a digital legend that evolved from a single unsettling image into an expansive sci-fi horror mythos—director Kane Parsons credits a different source of inspiration: a 2002 psychological thriller that showcased a legendary performer in his most chilling role to date.

Mark Romanek’s One Hour Photo features a haunting turn from Robin Williams, who portrays Sy Parrish, a socially isolated technician at a big-box store who becomes dangerously obsessed with the lives of his customers. Upon its 2002 debut, the film was lauded for Williams’ transformative, discomforting performance—a stark departure from his usual persona. It is a masterclass in subtlety; a man renowned for commanding any stage he stepped on manages to vanish entirely into the skin of a quiet, easily overlooked outcast.

In an interview with Letterboxd, Parsons explained that One Hour Photo shares the DNA of Backrooms. He notes that both films examine individuals marginalized by modern society, clinging to specific professional roles and the rigid structures of the contemporary world to provide a desperate, hollow sense of meaning.

In Backrooms, Clark (played by Chiwetel Ejiofor) sacrifices his personal relationships to the demands of his store. Similarly, in One Hour Photo, Sy’s profound loneliness drives him to channel his existential dread into a rigid, obsessive perfectionism regarding his photography work.

Image: Fox Searchlight/Everett Collection

Parsons also noted to Variety that the clinical, almost aggressively “perfect” vibrancy of the world outside the Backrooms was heavily influenced by One Hour Photo. Cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth employed a sterile, high-contrast aesthetic that feels unnervingly artificial, mirroring the meticulous frames Sy Parrish creates within his own distorted reality.

Image: Fox Searchlight

Beyond the stylistic choices, there is an eerie sonic and atmospheric kinship between the two films. Before the narrative descends into chaos, the early scenes of Backrooms are defined by a crushing, profound silence punctuated only by the low-frequency hum of fluorescent lighting. This same oppressive, ambient stillness permeates the department store in One Hour Photo, creating a sense of isolation that feels both quiet and deeply predatory.

While One Hour Photo occasionally struggles to maintain the momentum established by its atmosphere, it remains a haunting, brilliantly staged character study. To claim Robin Williams was a gifted actor is a massive understatement; however, witnessing his performance here is essential for anyone who wishes to appreciate the full, dark range of his extraordinary talent.

One Hour Photo is available to rent via Apple TV and Prime Video. Backrooms is currently playing in theaters.

Source: Polygon