Obsession Interview: Michael Johnston's No, No, No Impression, Bear's Backstory & That Ending

Michael Johnston joins Perri Nemiroff for a Collider Forces interview to dive deep into the making of Obsession! He reflects on the audition process, discovering his brother-sister chemistry with co-star Inde Navarette, and how director Curry Barker gave the cast a jolt of energy early in production. Johnston breaks down Bear's avoidant attachment style, the internet-culture mindset behind his character, and how reacting to Navarette's extreme performance levels shaped the film’s biggest scares. He also shares behind-the-scenes stories about shooting without line-readers for clean audio, the technical challenges of key set pieces, doing that "No, No, No" scene with Navarette, and his favorite viral meme moments. Plus, Johnston discusses why Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (Ready or Not) taking on The Mummy is such an exciting prospect. #obsession #michaeljohnston #horror #interview #indenavarrette 00:00 Michael Johnston Interview for Obsession 00:37 His Favorite Horror Movie 03:24 Why Location as an Actor Is So Important 04:59 Easter Eggs in Bear’s House + Baby Curry 06:05 His Love-Hate Relationship with Learning Lines 07:32 How Michael Takes the Pressure Off on Set 08:19 Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance Inspired Michael to Act 09:35 How Michael Got His Start as a Voice Actor 12:03 Reconnecting with His Dad & Studying Improv at Second City 14:43 Passing on a Scholarship to Move to LA 15:14 The Reality of Movie to LA 16:52 The Shock of Getting Live Action Acting Opportunities 18:40 Teen Wolf Made Him Feel Like He Was Soaring 20:25 What Happened After Teen Wolf Wrapped Up 22:43 Michael’s Range as a Voice Actor 25:45 He Does the Wubble Bubble Ball Commercial Perfectly! 28:16 Who’s in His Corner During All This Success? 31:02 How He’s Choosing New Projects 33:20 The Mummy with Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett 35:13 Obsession Talk Begins! 35:39 Doing Obsession Callbacks with Actresses for Nikki 38:09 The Moment They Knew Obsession Would Work 39:19 They Recorded Bear’s Wish Many Times 40:42 Bear’s Backstory & Attachment Style 42:31 Working on the Bear & Ian Friendship with Cooper Tomlinson 43:58 Megan Lawless as Sarah 44:49 Going “Off the Rails” with Inde Navarrette 46:36 Hearing Inde Scream on Set 47:19 The Most Surprising Obsession Meme 48:52 Can Michael Do the Inde Frown? 50:01 Michael’s No, No, No Impression 51:36 Is Bear Evil? 55:17 Nikki’s Reverse Walk and Bear’s Reaction 57:12 Michael Did All of His Phone & Doorway Scenes Without a Scene Partner! 59:00 “I’ll Rip My Eyes Out of My Fucking Skull and …” 01:01:13 Michael’s Toughest Scene Might Surprise You 01:03:55 How Michael Approached Playing “Wish Bear” at the End 01:06:18 What Is Michael Proud Of? BREAKING NEWS, REVIEWS & MORE: https://collider.com SUBSCRIBE:    / collider   FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL   / collider     / collider     / collider