The Directors of 2023’s Best Horror Film Started Out on YouTube

The top horror movie this year had an unusual start. Australian twins Danny and Michael Philippou, also known as RackaRacka on YouTube, began their journey into movie-making by creating funny videos to share online. They mixed themes a lot and made movies about characters from Harry Potter battling those from Star Wars or having Ronald McDonald fight Burger King.

The Road to the Best Horror of 2023

Their videos were all about crazy parodies, bloody scenes, and lots of humor. Some of their early videos, like Danny pretending to have accidents, got really popular on Facebook. They even appeared on big talk shows like Jimmy Kimmel and Conan O’Brien. At a friend’s suggestion, they started a YouTube channel to get noticed online.

Now, the twins are in their thirties and have moved from YouTube to the big screen with their A24 horror movie called Talk to Me. It still has the twins’ own brand of gore and humor, but it’s also a fair bit creepy! It’s about friends finding a spooky hand that lets them talk to ghosts, but things go wrong as they mess with this power—as you’d expect!

The Philippou Twins Were on YouTube

Their journey from funny online videos to a big horror movie on Netflix is a big deal for the duo. According to Danny Philippou, YouTube was very much like a practice field for the two to become filmmakers. They used the video they were making to get better, try new things, and get to where they are today. Michael also made a statement, adding that the two were now excited to tell more stories.

The movie got good reviews upon its release, with 94% of critics liking it on Rotten Tomatoes and 82% of regular viewers giving it a thumbs up. The twins are now already working on a sequel to their first movie success. It sure was an amazing transition for them to move from funny videos on YouTube to making it in the world of scary movies.