Pale-yellow flickering light falls over the faintly patterned walls. The carpet underfoot swallows your steps. The only sound you can hear is the buzz of fluorescent lights and your own breathing. But wait, is that your breathing? Or is that … something rattles, something seems to scuff. You've lost track of how long you've been here. Every turn brings you to the same place.

This is "The Backrooms."

The Backrooms, an eerie liminal space one finds themselves in when they accidentally noclip out of reality, is a viral creepypasta that has inspired creepy stories, fan art, video games and even found-footage videos since 2018. Now, A24 is even turning it into a full-fledged horror movie.

But who created the bizarre universe? How did it become a source for memes, and where is The Backrooms located in real life?

Find answers to these questions and more in our brief explainer on the memes and history of The Backrooms.

What Is 'The Backrooms' And Who Created The Creepypasta?

The Backrooms is a viral phenomenon that was launched by a creepypasta posted by an anonymous user on 4chan in 2019.

The original creepypasta, based on a photograph of a nondescript empty building with yellow walls, carpet-covered floors and dimly lit by fluorescent lights one might find in an office building, was accompanied by a description of a place one finds themselves in if they "noclip out of reality in the wrong areas."

Here's the text from the original 4chan post that started it all:

If you're not careful and you noclip out of reality in the wrong areas, you'll end up in the Backrooms, where it's nothing but the stink of old moist carpet, the madness of mono-yellow, the endless background noise of fluorescent lights at maximum hum-buzz, and approximately six hundred million square miles of randomly segmented empty rooms to be trapped in.
God save you if you hear something wandering around nearby, because it sure as h--- has heard you.

But the eerie area described in the creepypasta is just the start of a much larger story, no, an entire universe where uneasiness comes from the utter liminality of the space just as much as of the knowledge that something not of this world is wandering these endless rooms just out of sight, and the accidental encounter will not end well for you.

Where Did The Photo Used In 'The Backrooms' Story Come From?

The original post was made on 4chan's /x/ (paranormal) board in 2019, but first, in 2018, a user posted the now-famous photograph in a thread of "cursed images."

Then, a year later, in a different thread, a user again shared the iconic liminal space image, with the aforementioned user penning the now-famous creepypasta that spawned the lore behind the whole thing.

How Is 'The Backrooms' Referenced In Memes And Video Games?

As the post eventually went viral through multiple reposts across Reddit, Instagram, Facebook, X / Twitter and other sites or platforms, The Backrooms enamored fans of all things creepy to develop the budding universe by creating more stories, fan videos and, of course, endless memes about the accursed place just beyond the edge of reality.

The hype train surrounding The Backrooms did not stop there, as the place became an inspiration for video game levels and even entire video games, like BACKROOMS: The Complex Expedition and Escape the Backrooms, among others.

But the influence of the famous creepypasta goes even beyond that, as The Backrooms was one of the major drivers behind the popularization of liminal spaces in horror games, with The Exit 8 and POOLS being brilliant examples of the concept being implemented (the former of which was also turned into a full-length horror movie in Japan).

And in January 2022, young filmmaker Kane Parsons launched a 16-episode short horror found footage series based on the creepypasta that found viral success on YouTube — so much that in 2023, A24 announced that the studio is working on a film adaptation of the series, with Parsons set to direct.

What Is 'The Backrooms' Movie About?

A major motion picture based on The Backrooms from A24, the indie studio which has made a name for itself through the production of popular horror films like Midsommar and Hereditary, is how many are now just learning about the iconic creepypasta.

The movie was announced way back in February 2023, and it's largely inspired by "The Backrooms" YouTube video that propelled the creepypasta into the mainstream.

Directed by the same filmmaker, Kane Parsons, who made the YouTube video, the film was released on May 29th, 2026. If you're curious to see more about it and get a general vibe for what it'll be, you can check out the latest trailer below.

Where Is The Backrooms Located In Real Life?

In May 2024, after five years of attempts to locate the place where the famous photograph was taken, a user on X / Twitter wrote that the building where The Backrooms photograph was made has finally been found.

An archived internet page from 2003 revealed that the photograph was made in an empty furniture store in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, which was recently acquired by the Oshkosh RC cars racing team and was in the process of being converted into a racing track.

The page pointed to the exact location of the building where the photograph of The Backrooms was made over 20 years ago. The building, which nowadays houses a HobbyTown retail store and a Revolution Raceway track, is located at 807 Oregon St. in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

This is how the place where the photograph was taken looks today, after the location was transformed into a racing track:

So, those of you who said that The Backrooms could only possibly be located in Ohio can call your bets off, as the actual location and even the year when the photo that spawned the creepypasta was taken have finally been determined.

Related Memes

What Happens If X In The Backrooms?

If you're in The Backrooms, there is nothing left to do. You can't get out. But that hasn't stopped posters from wondering, "What Happens if X In The Backrooms?" with X meaning whatever activity you'd be curious about.

The trend picked up steam on TikTok in the summer of 2023, with users reveling in what by then was a classic piece of internet lore.

https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7249783145401158913

https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7251605688827366657

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For the full history of The Backrooms, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.