Blumhouse just handed MatPat a multi-project deal to turn indie horror games and horror YouTube channels into movies, and the first one is Amanda the Adventurer. Jason Blum announced it Friday at BlumFest during New York Comic Con. The guy who retired from Game Theory in 2024 isn't done, he just traded the upload schedule for a producer credit. That's a bigger deal for creators than it looks.
⚡ Key Takeaways
- Blumhouse signed MatPat to a multi-project deal adapting indie horror games and horror YouTube channels. Amanda the Adventurer is first.
- Jason Blum announced it October 9 at BlumFest, NYCC, with Epic Pictures CEO Patrick Ewald producing alongside Blum and MatPat.
- No deal value, director, cast or release date yet. The film is in early development.
- MatPat's FNAF track record: the 2023 film grossed about $297M worldwide, and FNAF 2 passed $201.8M.
- He left hosting with 17.7M Game Theorists subs. The channel was never the asset, his taste was.
- With Markiplier's Iron Lung at about $51.2M on a $3M budget, creator-native horror is now a proven theatrical lane.
What actually happened?
On October 9, MatPat hosted BlumFest at the Javits Center, and Jason Blum used the stage to announce the deal, per Variety. The first project is a live-action Amanda the Adventurer film, based on the 2023 indie puzzle-horror game from developer MANGLEDmaw Games and publisher DreadXP. Patrick, Blum and Patrick Ewald, CEO of DreadXP's parent company Epic Pictures, will produce, according to Deadline.
The game follows Riley Park, who finds old VHS tapes of a children's cartoon in her late Aunt Kate's attic, and the cartoon starts talking back. MatPat pitched it as "Dora the Explorer meets The Ring" and said the team is "moving really fast," per Yahoo Entertainment. What isn't public yet: deal value, the other titles, a director, a writer, a cast or a release date. Variety says the film is in early development.
"I am taking some of my all-time favorite indie games and horror channels from the interwebs and partnering with Blumhouse to bring them to the big screen."
Matthew "MatPat" Patrick, Producer, Deadline
Why does this matter for creators?
Because Blumhouse isn't buying uploads. MatPat built The Game Theorists to 17.7M subscribers before announcing his exit, according to Rolling Stone, and his last day hosting was March 9, 2024, per Tubefilter. He and Stephanie Patrick had already sold Theorist Media to UK startup Lunar X in December 2022, terms undisclosed, per Tubefilter. So the channel isn't the asset here.
The taste is. Blumhouse is paying for his read on which indie games and YouTube horror channels already have fans who will buy a ticket. That's a skill a decade of theory videos builds, and almost nobody in a studio development office has it. Call it what it is: creator judgment, finally priced like IP.
And that judgment has receipts. His theory videos helped make Five Nights at Freddy's huge, and he cameoed in Blumhouse's 2023 film, which opened to $80M domestic on a reported $20M budget while also streaming on Peacock, per Euronews. It finished around $297M worldwide, according to The Numbers.
Then he voiced Toy Bonnie in Five Nights at Freddy's 2, which opened to $63M domestic and $109M worldwide, a record for the weekend after Thanksgiving, per NBC News. It passed $201.8M worldwide by late December 2025, per Fangoria.
| Film | MatPat's role | Opening | Worldwide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Five Nights at Freddy's (2023) | Cameo | $80M domestic | ~$297M |
| Five Nights at Freddy's 2 (2025) | Voice of Toy Bonnie | $63M domestic / $109M worldwide | $201.8M+ by late Dec 2025 |
| Amanda the Adventurer | Producer | Not announced | Early development |
What's the bigger picture?
MatPat isn't alone. Markiplier self-financed and self-distributed Iron Lung to about $51.2M worldwide on a reported $3M budget, per The Numbers.
Two very different routes, same conclusion: creator-native horror is a proven theatrical category now, not a novelty. Markiplier kept the whole thing. MatPat is partnering with the biggest horror machine in town and lending it his eye. Both work because the fandom existed long before any studio showed up.
MatPat framed the slate as a win for the indie scene: "We are giving them the spotlight they deserve," he said at BlumFest, per The Hollywood Reporter. The thing to watch is who gets named next on the slate. The other thing to watch is whether those indie developers and channel owners get real upside, or just the spotlight.
What does Fanvault think?
Own the fan relationship before Hollywood calls, and keep most of what it earns. Fanvault takes 8% per transaction, so creators keep 92%, versus 15% at Fanvue, 10% + $0.30 at Passes and ~20% at Fanfix, with memberships, paywalled posts, paid DMs, tips and wishlists next to a storefront for authenticated memorabilia (auctions and buy-it-now drops for signed items, props and one-of-ones, exactly what a horror fandom collects). The leverage MatPat brought to Blumhouse was built fan by fan, and that relationship is worth more when the creator owns the storefront it runs through.
A decade of theory videos didn't just build a channel. It built a taste Hollywood is now paying for.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is MatPat's deal with Blumhouse?
It's a multi-project deal announced by Jason Blum at BlumFest during New York Comic Con on October 9, 2026. MatPat will adapt indie horror games and horror YouTube channels for the big screen, starting with Amanda the Adventurer, per Variety.
What is Amanda the Adventurer?
A 2023 indie puzzle-horror game from developer MANGLEDmaw Games and publisher DreadXP. Players follow Riley Park, who finds VHS tapes of an old children's cartoon in her late aunt's attic, and the cartoon starts communicating back. MatPat calls it "Dora the Explorer meets The Ring."
When does the Amanda the Adventurer movie come out?
No release date has been announced. Variety reports the film is in early development, with no director, writer or cast named yet.
Didn't MatPat retire?
He stepped down as host of the Theory channels, with his last day on March 9, 2024, per Tubefilter. He's since moved into producing, and he appeared in both Blumhouse Five Nights at Freddy's films.