Focus Features has set May 7, 2027 for “Anything But Ghosts,” the horror-comedy that “Obsession” director Curry Barker made before that film became a phenomenon.
“Obsession” has grossed over $500 million worldwide and is now in the awards conversation. It is the top-grossing release in Focus Features history. “Anything But Ghosts” gives the studio and co-producer Blumhouse-Atomic Monster a quick follow-up, opening within days of the anniversary of the first film’s May debut.
Barker directs and co-wrote the script with longtime collaborator Cooper Tomlinson, the “Obsession” co-star. The two also play the leads, a pair of fame-hungry amateur ghosthunters who land in real trouble when a frightened family hires them to clear a haunted house. Bryce Dallas Howard, Aaron Paul, Violet McGraw and Chris Reinacher round out the cast. The production wrapped in Vancouver, and Universal will handle international distribution.
The film shares a fictional universe with “Obsession,” Barker has said. A news anchor in the new movie reportedly mentions a triple homicide by a woman, and “Obsession” star Inde Navarrette has said audiences will see what became of her character, Nikki.
Barker’s rise is unusual. He and Tomlinson built a following with sketch comedy on their YouTube channel, That’s a Bad Idea, and his $800 short “Milk & Serial” drew close to 3 million views. Hollywood has courted him since. He is also set to write and direct a new “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” for A24.
Expectations will follow him. Barker told Deadline at a panel in Toronto that the hardest day on “Obsession” was the easiest on the new film, a nod to what a proper budget and schedule can do. He also told The Hollywood Reporter he wants a different experience this time. “Nobody wants the same movie twice,” he said. Tomlinson has described the tone as Key & Peele stumbling into “Hereditary.”
The date lands in a crowded spring. Sony’s “The Legend of Zelda” opens April 30, and Lionsgate’s Mel Gibson-directed “The Resurrection of the Christ: Part One” arrives the same week. Barker and Tomlinson announced the date on social media and noted that tickets are not yet on sale.
