Curry Barker fought for his ideas, and now we have Obsession
Q with Tom Power

Curry Barker fought for his ideas, and now we have Obsession

B1IntermediateSeptember 25, 202633 min
  • Interview

Last year, Curry Barker’s debut feature Obsession made movie history at the Toronto International Film Festival. After its midnight premiere, it was bought by Focus Features for roughly $15 million — one of the largest festival acquisitions ever. Since then, the sleeper hit has grossed more than $500 million worldwide, bringing the 27-year-old director back to TIFF this year for a special fan screening. Curry joins Tom Power in the Q studio to talk about his whirlwind rise, why staying grounded fuels his creativity and how a single year completely transformed his life.

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I wonder if it might resonate with you. The most successful people in life don't take

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0:33

I'm Tom Power. Welcome to Q. All right. All right. I'm going to read you a quote. And I wonder if it might resonate with you. The most successful people in life don't take themselves too seriously. The filmmaker Curry Barker heard that from the filmmaker JJ Abrams on a podcast. They weren't like talking or anything like that. Curry Barker was like

0:56

17, but he ran with it, and I mean ran with it. Curry Barker's debut feature film Obsession is basically a careful what you wish for kind of thing. It's a horror movie that follows this guy who makes a wish when he breaks something called the One Wish Willow, and he wishes that this woman that he has a crush on would love him back. But of course, as all monkey

1:18

paw type films go, it all backfires and man oh man, it gets dark and terrifying. Can I tell you the truth? I shouldn't admit this, but before I watched this movie, I had to read the synopsis with all the spoilers in it because it was just way too scary for me.

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