Online gaming giant Fortnite is seemingly preparing for a significant crossover event with the acclaimed horror film 'Obsession'. Yesterday, game developers Epic Games released a new trailer that cleverly reworks scenes from the movie to embed various Fortnite Easter eggs, sparking widespread speculation among fans about an upcoming in-game collaboration.
The film 'Obsession', which premiered earlier this year, has been a surprise hit, earning over $440 million globally against a modest budget of $750,000. Described as a 'monkey-paw' horror, the movie centres on Inde Navarrette's character, Nikki, who becomes fixated on Michael Johnston's Bear after a wish goes awry. Its director, Curry Barker, has already indicated plans to adapt more of his YouTube short films into features following the movie's success.
The recently unveiled trailer, captioned 'Watch the Obsession. Play the Obsession,' directly promotes the digital release of the film. However, its integration of Fortnite elements – such as renaming the 'One Wish Willow' to 'One Llama Luck' and featuring Fortnite's Zero Point Sprite haunting Bear – has led many to believe this is merely the precursor to a more extensive, ongoing collaboration within the game itself.
Adding to the excitement, the film's breakout star, Inde Navarrette, has seen a surge in popularity for her past gaming content. Following 'Obsession's' success, previously removed Twitch streams of Navarrette playing titles like 'The Last Of Us' and 'Outlast' were re-uploaded to a new YouTube channel under her name earlier this month. These videos, totalling ten hours, accumulated over 1.6 million views within their first nine days. Additionally, TikToks showing her playing 'Call Of Duty' in a Toad hat have also gone viral, and she recently received a rare copy of 2009's 'Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2'.
This potential 'Obsession' crossover aligns with Fortnite's established strategy of integrating popular culture into its ecosystem. Epic Games has a track record of high-profile collaborations, previously teasing the arrival of pop star Addison Rae through their DC Summer trailer. Such events typically introduce new character skins, emotes, and in-game challenges, drawing in both existing players and new audiences from the featured franchise.