Like so many internet phenomena, it’s hard to pinpoint a creator for the Backrooms. The concept originated from an anonymous creepypasta on 4chan back in 2019, a liminal labyrinth that strove to capture the feeling of noclipping out of reality. It quickly took on a life of its own, with other short stories, videos, and even games cropping up out of the urban legend. One of the many to build on the myth of the Backrooms was Kane ‘Pixels’ Parsons, who at the age of 16 created a 9-minute found footage horror that blew up in popularity so much that it led to a feature film.

Now, the distributor of said feature film—A24—is retroactively bringing the hammer down on related material that pre-dates the movie. “Creators, beware,” reads a post in the dedicated subreddit. “A24 requested that my Backrooms-inspired artwork be taken down. It is a recreation of the pattern from the well-known 2019 image who started the whole Backrooms lore. I find it disappointing to see a company attempt to claim such a broad connection to a concept that has been developed, shared, and loved by an online community for years. I would have hoped that A24 would celebrate that creative history rather than take action against independent artists who were, just like them, inspired by it.”

“Redbubble informed me that the artwork was removed following a complaint submitted on behalf of ‘A24 Films LLC.’ I did not receive communication from A24, and I cannot independently confirm who submitted the complaint,” they continued. “I have disputed the removal and explained that my artwork was recreated from the original 2019 Backrooms image, not copied from A24’s film or merchandise.”

Parsons Is "Looking Into" It, Assures That It "Should Not Be Happening"

It’s an unfortunate situation that is fast becoming the norm as studios latch onto internet properties that are collectively built up by entire communities. Just last year, Skibidi Toilet creator Alexey ‘DaFuq!? Boom’ Gerasimov partnered with Michael Bay’s production company Invisible Narratives to expand the IP into movies and television shows, but was allegedly forced to hand over control of the property. Invisible denied the accusations, claiming that Gerasimov chose to step back while remaining as an executive producer, but nonetheless attempted to copyright strike Garry’s Mod—showing a distinct lack of understanding on the history of internet culture.

Thankfully, in the case of Backrooms, the community has Parsons on its side. In response to the Reddit post, he explained, “I’m looking into this. Should not be happening.” After all, as explained by post author GnarlyNet, it sets a worrying precedent for “when large companies adapt community-created internet culture.” Not to mention that, as they explained in a follow-up comment with photo evidence, they “painfully remade the pattern from the original image in Inkscape a couple of years ago.” If A24 is willing to target Backrooms content retroactively, there's a trove of community-created content at risk.