Cooper Tomlinson, the Woodinville actor, writer and co-star of the year’s breakout horror hit “Obsession,” always wished he could make movies. However, his wish didn’t come true by snapping a magic stick, but from years of pursuing his passion.
Inspired by his theater teacher at Woodinville High School, Josh Butchart, Tomlinson cut his teeth making short films before acting in the locally shot and set 2019 feature “Aberdeen.” That was the last film he made here before heading off to actively pursue filmmaking in Los Angeles, where he met his now collaborator and friend Curry Barker.
The duo began making shorts and sketches for their YouTube channel, that’s a bad idea, before making a full horror film, “Milk & Serial.” However, they had yet to make one for theaters.
Now they’ve done so, and, alongside the recent “Backrooms,” have become part of a new generation of horror filmmakers who are making a splash at the box office. Tomlinson, though, never expected the film would become such a hit.
“This was literally just like making a little movie in our backyard, in a way,” Tomlinson said.
Taking the film, which Barker wrote and directed, from their backyard to the big screen has paid off. Made for $750,000 before being acquired by Focus Features, it recently passed the $400 million mark in global ticket sales. Though the way the film has resonated with audiences is something he’s proud of, Tomlinson isn’t letting any of it go to his head.
“Curry and I, we don’t take ourselves too seriously. Just don’t take things too seriously, have fun, work with good people, and this kind of thing might happen,” Tomlinson said. “It doesn’t matter who is in it, just make something compelling and everything else will follow.”
The film, which centers on a young man who wishes his crush will love him only to get all he wished for and more, is one Tomlinson feels is for a new generation of horror fans like he was.
“Growing up, us kids were just trying to get into the rated-R scary movie. I’m sure all the kids are trying to get into ‘Obsession’ right now,” Tomlinson said. “My first job was at AMC Woodinville. I started there when I was 15 years old so then I just got to go into the movies all the time. I worked there to save up to go to L.A.”
Tomlinson also was called to return home to introduce a screening at SIFF Cinema Downtown in May when “Obsession” played as part of the yearly Seattle International Film Festival. It was a full-circle moment for him after getting his own cinema education there.
“I grew up going to that theater. I remember seeing ‘It: Chapter 1,’ ‘Star Trek’ and ‘Star Wars’ with my dad. All kinds of awesome movies and it was such an experience there,” Tomlinson said, recalling how, in addition to his close friends coming, there were also other supporters from his past: his teachers. “I was such a troublemaker in their classes, just, you know, a class clown, always screwing around. I could never shut up about what I wanted to do and everybody knows this is always what I wanted to do. It was a very rewarding experience to sit there.”
As for when people will be able to sit down to see his next movie, Tomlinson has already shot another horror project with Barker, “Anything but Ghosts,” which the director said takes place in the same universe as “Obsession” and is set to come out sometime later next year. The upcoming film brought Tomlinson back closer to home, where he’d not only love to shoot a project, but also bring his collaborator for a screening.
“I just shot up in Vancouver, (B.C.), and that kind of felt like being at home, in a way, or closer to home. But I’d love to come to Seattle and shoot something when the weather is good, or if the script calls for bad weather,” Tomlinson said. “If there is a screening (of ‘Anything but Ghosts’) at SIFF, I plan to bring Curry. He’s never been to Seattle, so we both have to come next time.”
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