Jason Blum Discusses Hollywood’s Biggest Issue Making Movies Young People Want

For years, the dominant theory regarding Hollywood’s box office challenges has pointed to streaming, diminishing attention spans, and a generation seemingly reluctant to leave their homes. This narrative has shaped industry discussions since the pandemic, framing the decline in ticket sales as an unavoidable, permanent change rather than a challenge studios could address.

However, this year’s statistics tell a different story. The domestic box office is on track to surpass 10 billion dollars for the first time in seven years, fueled by a surge of unexpected successes that have little to do with legacy franchises or well-known stars, and everything to do with young, internet-savvy filmmakers finally getting their chance.

Jason Blum, whose company Blumhouse Atomic Monster produced both ‘Obsession’ and ‘Backrooms’, articulated why he believes the industry has struggled for so long in a recent cover story for Variety. According to Blum, the audience never truly vanished; studios simply kept betting on the wrong content for the people who were still attending theaters. “The audience was out there, it’s just that we were making the wrong movies for them,” Blum told Variety, highlighting Hollywood’s long-standing reliance on aging intellectual properties that cater more to older generations than to the moviegoers actually filling theater seats.

This theory aligns with the box office outcomes in 2026. ‘Obsession’, produced for just 750,000 dollars by first-time director Curry Barker, has grossed over 426 million dollars worldwide, an astonishing return that includes subsequent weekends that outperformed its opening. ‘Backrooms’, inspired by a YouTube horror series from 20-year-old creator Kane Parsons, has contributed another 260 million dollars to this trend of low-budget, internet-rooted projects significantly exceeding expectations.

Blum was careful to clarify that this success is not merely about selecting popular online creators and giving them a budget. He stressed that both films thrived because their directors dedicated years to genuinely refining their scripts rather than hastily producing something to capitalize on existing internet fame. “It’s not just about finding people who are popular on YouTube or TikTok and throwing a bunch of money at them,” he stated, noting that the directors of both films labored over their material for years before it ever reached a set.

This success has predictably triggered a rush across the industry to replicate the formula, with studios eager to option other viral internet properties. Recent announcements include a film based on the horror creation Siren Head, as well as a Steven Spielberg-produced adaptation of the YouTube series Mandela Catalogue, both clear attempts to capture lightning in a bottle like ‘Backrooms’ and ‘Obsession’ did.

Blum’s comments come alongside broader evidence that Hollywood’s audience issue was never truly about Gen Z abandoning theaters. According to Fandango research cited by Variety, 87 percent of Gen Z moviegoers watched at least one film in theaters over the past 12 months, a higher percentage than millennials, Gen X, or baby boomers, with younger audiences also averaging more theatrical visits per year than every older generation surveyed.

Other breakout hits in 2026 reinforce the broader shift in audience preferences. ‘Project Hail Mary’ exceeded expectations with 683 million dollars globally, while the music biopic ‘Michael’ became the first film of its kind to surpass 1 billion dollars in ticket sales despite a tumultuous, delay-plagued production. Amazon MGM head of film Courtenay Valenti echoed Blum’s sentiment about the industry needing to adapt rather than simply pursue pre-pandemic strategies, noting that audiences in 2026 look nothing like they did in 2018 or 2019.

Whether the current wave of internet-inspired projects can maintain this momentum or will prove to be a fleeting trend remains to be seen. For now, Hollywood finally has substantial data supporting Blum’s long-held argument. Do you believe studios have genuinely learned their lesson about creating films for younger audiences, or is this merely a temporary trend before old habits resurface? Share your thoughts in the comments.