[This story contains spoilers for Obsession.]
Focus Features and Blumhouse’s Obsession hit theaters this weekend — and in a big way.
The indie horror film from 26-year-old writer-director Curry Barker, which first made waves at the Toronto International Film Festival in September and quickly became a favorite among critics and fans, has now exceeded box office expectations, grossing $17.2 million domestically against its $750,000 budget. But beyond its breakout success, much of the online debate has centered on its male lead, Bear (Michael Johnston), and whether he may actually be the film’s true villain — something Johnston is pleased to unpack.
Since the film explores themes of co-dependency and consent, Bear’s choices have become a major point of discussion. Too afraid to confess his feelings to his longtime crush and friend, Nikki (Inde Navarrette), Bear instead turns to using a One Wish Willow for her to love him more than anyone else in the world. When his wish comes true, Bear initially embraces the fantasy, ignoring red flags and the increasingly disturbing changes in Nikki’s behavior as he commits to their relationship. But as it begins to become painfully clear — particularly during the infamous dinner scene and later that night — that Nikki is no longer herself, Bear’s decision to stay, despite Ian’s (Cooper Tomlinson) warnings, raises questions about desire and denial.
Below, the former Teen Wolf star opens up in a candid conversation about why Bear makes the choices he does, what was really going through his mind during that “What’s so bad about being with me?” moment, whether Sarah (Megan Lawless) may have been the better path, if Ian was sabotaging his relationship with Nikki and how Johnston’s own ideas ultimately helped shape the film’s ending.
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How did this project get on your radar, and what was the process with your audition and casting?
I was sent an email from my reps with the script, and they just said, “Here’s a script. Read it. Tell us if you’re interested, and then we’ll go from there.” So I read the script in one sitting immediately. I was on my way out the door. I don’t even remember where I was supposed to go, and I said, “I’m just gonna look at a few pages.” I read the whole thing and canceled my plans. I loved it. I’m a big horror consumer and fan through and through. And I said, “What can we do? How do we move forward?” So they set up a meeting with Curry, and we just hit it off right away. I ended up being brought in for a chemistry read with girls to play Nikki. I read with a few girls. Inde was the last one that came into the room. I think everyone knew that it was the right fit. There was electricity in the air. And I got the call a little later that I got the role. So it wasn’t your typical, I auditioned first, it just came across my desk. I found out later that someone knew someone who threw my name in the hat. I’m gonna give credit to Skyler Zurn [Obsession’s casting director] and she really…they did a big search for this role, so I’m so grateful to be a part of it.
From playing this character, why do you think Bear was afraid to tell Nikki how he truly felt about her?
That’s the question, isn’t it? Sometimes I had to ask myself that question, because I get it. It’s hard sometimes to tell someone how you really feel. The fear of rejection. But Bear in this movie is just an example of the absolutely wrong thing to do. The farthest end of that spectrum. I think that’s just part of who he is. He’s just someone who maybe lacks that self-confidence. He’s so afraid of rejection that the idea of possible rejection is more painful. And so it’s too hard. It was just too hard for him. He couldn’t handle it. Poor guy, bless his heart. (Laughs.)
One could say that Nikki was giving mixed signals. I spoke with Inde, and she thinks that if Bear had just told her the truth, maybe they could have tried something. What is your reaction to that? Do you think they could have had a relationship and this all could have been avoided?
I heard Inde say that the other day. I was actually surprised. I would have thought that there was no way they’d have a chance. So, to hear her say that they could have at least had a go at it. Yeah, that was a surprise for me. What I will say is, I think the No. 1 reason why she may have been giving mixed signals is because of Bear’s confidence issue. I think if he was more confident, that would help a lot of the situation. It’s sexy when somebody knows what they want. It’s sexy when somebody puts themselves out there. But he just couldn’t do it. Bear would have been totally down for that. That’s what he should have done. Such a tragedy.
There’s so much discourse that he’s the real villain of this movie. Do you think that Bear is a victim of the cursed wish, or do you think his desire to be with Nikki and control made him the real villain from the start?
I never thought of Bear as a villain, but what really drew me to this story was the gray morals of it all. I love that it’s not black-and-white. I love that it doesn’t tell you how you should feel. It’s really up for interpretation, because the truth is, Bear has good in him and he has bad in him, like all of us. I do think that he leans more toward the bad in a lot of ways. But it was really important to keep the audience rooting for him in some ways. So when I played him, I just had to stay completely focused on what he wanted more than anything else, and try not to judge any of his decisions. But I would say he definitely starts as the protagonist, and I would tend to agree that I can see him becoming a bit of an antagonist. I love that. Fully, the antagonist, though? I don’t think I would say fully, because the key thing is he didn’t know that the wish was going to work. Sure, his desires were incredibly selfish. Totally, 100 percent, but he didn’t know the wish was gonna work. And then he dug himself into such a deep hole that he didn’t really see any chance of getting out, so he just kept digging himself deeper. But I love it. I love the discourse, it’s amazing. It’s so much more interesting.
Inde Navarrette and Michael Johnston in Obsession.
Courtesy of Focus Features
What did you think of the scene where Nikki, in her sleep, says to kill her, and then you say, “What’s so bad about being with me?”
There were a lot of conversations about that scene. For sure, that is one of the darkest scenes in the movie, in a way. And that’s so cool, because there’s no blood or gore. It’s just so tragic. I think that scene really kind of shows you it’s a perfect example of the worst thing that could happen when you’re living for your deepest desires and impulsively choosing things you think would make you feel good, instead of facing up to your own issues. I don’t think I really never played Bear as a guy who wanted to hurt Nikki. I feel like, in some ways, he really does deeply care for her, but he just can’t look past his own desires. He’s just in so much pain, and he’s so lonely. I think that scene is incredibly upsetting. I really do. And I didn’t realize how upsetting that scene was until I watched it in the theater, because in the moment, I was just focused on what Bear was going through. He just wanted to hold on to this thing. He wasn’t trying to hurt anyone. But sometimes we make mistakes or choices that are capable of deeply hurting other people, and I think that’s what this movie was trying to explore. If these things didn’t happen, it wouldn’t be a horror movie, it wouldn’t be so controversial, right? It’s up to people. It’s up to the audience to decide how they feel about it, which is great. I can say it’s not on me, it’s up to you. (Laughs.)
Do you think Bear truly loved Nikki, or was he more in love with the idea of her?
Great question. I think Bear was in love with the idea of Nikki. Total limerence. The movie doesn’t dive into any of the backstory too much, but if you really pay attention, Bear has lost a pet. He has also recently lost a grandmother. It doesn’t seem like there are any parents around. He’s inherited his grandmother’s house. He’s been through a lot of loss recently. Bear is obviously avoiding a lot of feelings, and he thinks that if he gets this girl of his dreams, maybe all his pain will go away, or he won’t have to think about it. So yes. It’s the idea of what they could be. I don’t think that Bear is emotionally capable of seeing how acting on those desires is affecting Nikki or his friends. Maybe until it’s too late, but one could even argue that even in the last moments, he still kind of didn’t get it, which I kind of love. (Laughs.)
When he went into the bathroom and took the pills, I kept thinking there’s no way this movie is going to end like this. He’s gonna come back. Do you think that that was his only option in that moment to break through, that he had to die? How do you interpret that ending?
As far as Bear is concerned, his own death is the only possible way that he could do right by Nikki. Obviously, Bear, at the end of it, is too much of a coward to go through with it. I don’t even know if coward is too harsh. I mean, in a lot of ways, yes, Bear is a coward. But committing that act is horrifying and scary. I don’t know if I would be able to do it. But I absolutely think that Bear sees that as his only option. And maybe that’s one good quality. He’s not considering killing Nikki, that would be that would be horrible. But yes, he sees that as his only way.
Originally, the script had it set that Bear can’t shoot himself. Bear takes the pills, and the wish is made, and then he goes to Nikki, because he’s now under the spell of whatever wish that she made. We filmed it. We got a great take. We watched it back. It was fantastic. We were ready to move on, and then I got the idea, wait a minute, “What if Bear, in the last second, chickens out and tries to vomit up the pills?” I told this to Curry, and he was like, “Roll the cameras! Roll the cameras!” We did one take of it, and it was so perfect. It perfectly summed up who Bear was as a character. That was one of those magical moments that I will never forget. We were all so proud. It all just came together, and that really speaks to Curry and the environment that he created, keeping it collaborative and being open to ideas. That whole scene is one of my favorite scenes in the entire movie.
I know in the original script, Nikki dies too. But did you guys ever film that?
We did. There was a whole practical blood splatter. It was absolutely devastating, and it looked so real. And after we filmed that, Curry said, “We’ve got to do a take where she lives, just to have it as backup.” I believe we only did one take. And Inde absolutely killed it, to the point where we all realized her surviving is so much more tragic. Because it just makes your mind wonder: Now what is going on to happen to her? Is she going to be arrested? It’s so awful. It’s so mean. (Laughs.) This is such a mean movie, but I love it. (Laughs.) It’s the signature Curry Barker style. It gives you some food for thought right at the end. We might be ending here, but this story is not over.
Also, there were some touching moments between Bear and Sarah. Do you think that he should have given her a shot? Did he miss what was right in front of him the whole time?
Absolutely. Sarah would have been the ideal choice. I think they would have just been perfect for each other. But that’d be a romance, a true romance film. (Laughs.) It’s such a tragedy. I also love to think about what might have happened if Nikki didn’t show up to the car or if she had come later. I wonder what would have happened between him and Sarah. (Laughs.) I wonder how far that would have gone. That’s something I always liked to think about while filming.
Was that one of the most intense scenes to film?
The whole stunt of it was very intense. But I would say most of those really technical, scary or shocking scenes in the film felt the most clunky, because it’s not actually as dark as it looks on camera. That’s all done in post [production]. They’re so technical, and they have to do it over and over. Those scenes typically don’t feel very scary. That’s where you really have to rely on the director’s vision. In fact, it felt silly. I mean, we were all laughing the whole time. It was one of my favorite days on set. We were having a blast, which is so dark, but we loved it. (Laughs.) There was blood everywhere. Someone maybe forgot to put down a plastic sheet under the seat, so that car was soaked with blood, and I think it took them two days to clean it.
Michael Johnston as Bear, Megan Lawless as Sarah and Cooper Tomlinson as Ian in Obsession.
Courtesy of Focus Features
The movie follows Bear’s friend group, with Ian being his closest guy friend. We find out that he and Nikki were hooking up secretly. Meanwhile, Bear has been in love with her this whole time. Do you think that Ian was trying to almost sabotage his relationship?
I don’t think Ian was trying to fully sabotage Bear’s chances of being with Nikki. But because there was something going on between Ian and Nikki, he was certainly trying to buy some more time. I wonder if there was still something going on between them, even possibly that night before all of that happened. I get the vibes that they would have been a toxic couple that just keeps going back to each other, that’s what I always had in my head. But I think it was somewhere in between.
Was Bear’s Piña colada order his softest red flag?
(Laughs.) Softest red flag for sure, 100 percent. You know that bartender was pissed off. That’s so funny that you mentioned that, because originally, the drink that Curry wanted me to order was a Shirley Temple.
That’s even worse!
I took Curry aside, and I was like, “Bro, that’s funny, but that’s too far. He’s clueless, but he’s not that clueless.” So we had a big debate. There were a bunch of us debating and throwing in what drink should it be? What drink should it be? Inde and Megan were throwing out the girliest drinks, even worse than a Shirley Temple. I don’t know what’s more girly than a Shirley Temple, but they were all throwing out the girliest drinks. And I was like, “Oh, come on, how about a Piña colada?” And that’s what we went with.
I was trying to make him not a total loser. I felt like I can get behind a Piña colada. I would order a Piña colada at the appropriate bar, but not Barker’s pub. Hey, you know what? At least he knows what he wants. At least he made that one choice. Bear could never make a decision, but he knows he wants a Piña colada. I’m so glad you asked that question. That is absolutely hilarious.
You and Inde are breakout stars from this film, but so is Curry. With this being his first feature, and with other projects on the horizon, like Texas Chainsaw Massacre. What was it like working with him on this journey, so early in what seems to be a really exciting career and a new voice in the horror genre?
It was an honor. Curry has been at this for a long time with no budget, and I think that’s why he’s so sharp. I feel like we all had something to prove, not to mention Curry brought on many of the people he’s been working with, which contributed greatly to the environment on set, which was so positive, helpful, and eager. I will be chasing that experience for the rest of my career, and I would be so lucky to have that again in the future. I would do anything to go back. I mean, I missed that. And we had no idea that our little movie would end up in theaters worldwide. It’s the best gift.
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Obsession is now playing in theaters. Check out all of The Hollywood Reporter‘s coverage here, including a spoiler interview with Inde Navarrette.
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