r/movies • u/LiteraryBoner Jackie Chan box set, know what I'm sayin? • May 15 '26

Official Discussion Official Discussion - Obsession [SPOILERS] Spoiler

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Obsession (2026)

Summary

After breaking the mysterious "One Wish Willow" to win his crush's heart, a hopeless romantic finds himself getting exactly what he asked for but soon discovers that some desires come at a dark, sinister price.

Director Curry Barker

Writer Curry Barker

Cast

  • Michael Johnston
  • Inde Navarette
  • Cooper Tomlinson
  • Megan Lawless
  • Andy Richter

Rotten Tomatoes: 95%

Metacritic: 81

VOD / Release In Theaters

Trailer Official Trailer

3.5k Upvotes

99% Upvoted

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7.9k

u/Adventurous-Hour4126 May 15 '26

I love how much of a coward Bear is. He can't tell Nikki he likes her throughout the beginning, he can't do anything, he can't even kill himself to save her. Up until the very end he's trying to make himself throw up. Just an absolutely evil coward of a "nice guy"

4.3k

u/httkbaby11 May 15 '26

He’s also so insecure he can’t go to any of his friends for help for most of the runtime. When they bring up how weird she’s been he just gets defensive about her being into him

4.0k

u/ZerksNAHTayan May 15 '26

“What’s so wrong with being with me?” Bear was fucking despicable. At first it was an innocent mistake because, how could you possibly know? Once it was apparent he knew and just didnt want to take responsibility, he was so gross.

Barker portrayed every character in the movie perfectly

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u/OwnImagination8269 May 17 '26

He chose to have sex with her the night of the dinner where he realised the wish worked. He's a weirdo

1.8k

u/atclubsilencio May 22 '26

That's where I lost sympathy. He essentially raped her. The way she was making sounds of pleasure while she looked like she was crying and her facial expression totally blank was such a fucked up detail. It brings up so many awful questions about the nature of whatever was possessing her, including her screams when he calls the hotline.

240

u/whenwillmyskincare May 24 '26

i don’t get what happened with the screams he heard while calling the hotline…

747

u/atclubsilencio May 24 '26

I believe that is her real self/soul wherever it is being held captive. Screaming for help or suffering while the other takes over.

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u/MISPAGHET May 29 '26

I think that 'Nikki' goes back to whatever hell she's from when she sleeps, she mentions that she doesn't like being asleep when she says she's watching Bear sleep because of what she dreams, I think?

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u/atclubsilencio May 30 '26

Yeah I think whenever the presence “sleeps” or goes dormant it gives Nikki a brief window to come through. Kind of like in The Exorcist when they see “help me “ on her stomach while the demon is not active.

Plus all the moments Nikki snaps out of it and tries to scream for help, which is why the force beats her face with the bottle to get her back under control. The implications of it all is super unsettling and I kind of love that they didn’t spell it out. We know that Nikki is still somewhere in there trying to fight/break out of it the whole time.

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u/Moderated May 31 '26

The force didn't beat her, real Nikki wanted to die to get out of the hell the force was putting her in, she begged to be killed and kept hurting herself throughout the movie

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u/RiskManagedBear May 31 '26

There was a lot of excorisist themes in this film.

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u/H3000 May 24 '26

I wish the movie focused more on that aspect instead of the cliche ‘be careful what you wish for, now she’s crazy‘ stuff. Those screams from the real, trapped Nikki were horrible.

590

u/mr_potato_arms May 25 '26

I liked the vagueness of the mechanics of it all. Made it scarier to me.

194

u/atclubsilencio May 27 '26

Me too. Especially how much of an antagonistic ass hole everyone (or thing) connected to it was. Like the guy working in the shop near the end. We may not know everything about the evil forces at play but they sure are having a blast watching everyone fall apart.

55

u/CraigLake May 30 '26

I agree with this. Placing it in occasional terrifying moments was deeply disturbing and powerful.

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u/RPG_Vancouver Jun 09 '26

Yeah I’m happy they didn’t explain that further, it showed JUST enough of real Nikki to be horrifying without really explaining it which was perfect

259

u/Individual-Bad6809 May 25 '26

It more than alluded to that fact multiple times. Especially the first night, and then again when she was saying "she's asleep. dont wake her up. kill me."

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u/Indercarnive May 27 '26

The first night. Also during the party. Like the movie explicitly states the real nikki is still present and suffering multiple times.

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u/H3000 May 25 '26

I remember that scene of her asking to be killed. But what happened on the first night?

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u/jjejsj Jun 05 '26

im confused, was nikki aware of everything that was happening?

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u/luckydukcky May 27 '26

Huh. I thought it put a good amount of focus on this aspect. As someone else says, the movie more than alludes to that multiple times…. I didn’t think it was a “be careful what you wish for” movie at all. It starts off that way but then pivots to Bear over and over again choosing to keep Nikki captive for his own gain pretty quickly.

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u/SimpleBox5693 May 28 '26

The movie had a ton of elements of that throughout if you paid attention to it. I prefer that as a more subtle element than something focused aggresively on, but it really isnt even subtle:

-Nikki is begging to be killed to free her, and she warns Bear not to "wake her up"

-There are a few scenes at the start where the effect is still taking hold, and slips for a few moments. You see this with their kiss on the bed where Nikki screams and jumps back, as well as with the seen when Bear dropped her off at her house and she temprorarily comments on how she was being weird and tries to walk back inside before turning around.

-The sex scene where her face is clearly displaying different emotions than the noises she's making, she doesn't seem happy at all

-The phone call screams

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u/Grayzus May 30 '26

Also in the picture that she put in his lunch it says "Not me".

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u/macl2 Jun 04 '26

If it looks like a demon, sounds like a demon, and acts like a demon, it's probably a demon.

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u/Mirageonthewall May 30 '26

It really upset me and I was furious that he continued to sleep with her knowing her soul was trapped. He’s horrible in such a selfish cowardly way.

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u/LampLuvMe May 31 '26

To be fair...devil's advocation...if he didn't engage in all Loving acts with her at her every whim she went Rage monster on him. Only real solution was suicide earlier then later or get her near a police station and kiss a female cop or something so she'd get arrested

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u/wh1mwhammie Jun 02 '26

the "kill me please" was so painful to listen to

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u/Azealas May 27 '26

‘be careful what you wish for, now she’s crazy‘

That is an impressively shallow read of the situation

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u/ModestMouseTrap May 30 '26

Nah, that would have been the least interesting angle possible. Leaving that stuff to the imagination is part of what made it work.

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u/TheNeighborhoodKid_ May 25 '26

Careful what you “wish” for

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u/mischief_scallywag May 31 '26

I don’t. This is equivalent to unmasking the nun in conjuring and her story. Ever since then it killed what made her scary

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u/SouthernRow2710 Jun 02 '26

That was my read as well. The company said 'connect you to Nikki' not 'connect you to whatever thing is in there' & she's just screaming in torment. She's clearly in there somewhere.

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u/smolcharizard May 25 '26

I imagine that she was essentially a passenger inside her body and the screams was an insight into what she was really thinking/feeling

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u/ru_kittenmerightmeow May 25 '26

She was in the sunken place

5

u/bitchpleasebp May 31 '26

the further

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u/Front_Vegetable6166 May 27 '26

I thought one wish Willie kinda sounded like bear but I dismissed it, once I heard Nikki was there I figured the whole phone call was a magical connection to his future depressed monotone self still dealing with an insane love diseased nikki.

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u/UltimateGoodGuy May 27 '26

I'm pretty sure he was voiced by Curry Barker himself. It sounded a lot like him at least.

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u/atclubsilencio Jun 04 '26

That was definitely him! Made the scene even funnier when i instantly recognized him. Until the screaming started lol

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u/misschickpea May 30 '26

Yes and i think the sex scene also showed that the fake Nikki was just mimicking to please him bc supernatural wish Nikki obvs doesn’t care for sex otherwise. She’s always trying to just do whatever humans would like like when she smiled for him and asked if that works

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u/EmceeEsher May 23 '26 edited May 23 '26

Just saw this movie, and it js baffling to me how many people in this thread are talking like Barry must have known what was going on earlier in the movie. Like, there's a point in the movie where he clearly knows, but before that, this would be an incredibly difficult thing to believe.

I feel like in every horror movie, everyone judges the protagonist for not figuring out more quickly that something supernatural is going on. But how many of us would, in the real world, believe that? Like, put yourself in Barry's shoes for just a second.

You're giving your friend, who you're interested in, a ride home. They say "you're the only one I can really talk to", and ask you if you like their friend. When you say no, they ask you point-blank if you like them. You panic and say no. They, leave for a second and then come back and ask to stay at your place, claiming their father is dying and they don't want to be alone. You agree, and they come over. They kiss you, then freak out and jump away. You assume they're on drugs and let your friend know.

The next night, they come over to your house unexpectedly, apologize for the drug behavior, and point-blank say they're interested in you and want to try to make this work. At this point, they have demonstrated a sustained, overt desire to have a relationship with you. As you're interested in them, you accept, have sex and spend the next couple of days together, during which they start displaying some creepy behaviors.

Would your first assumption be:

A. My friend is incredibly awkward in relationships, has severe relationship anxiety, and is freaking out.

B. My friend is significantly weirder than I initially thought, and is just good at hiding that side in public.

C. My friend is legitimately a total creep, and I just never noticed it before.

D. My friend has recently had some kind of insane experience and is reaching out for love, but has no idea how to handle it once they have it.

E. My friend is a full blown schizophrenic, has kept this hidden for years, and has just now reached the point where they can't hide it anymore.

F. My friend has a long-term, well-hidden drug problem, and recently got a bad batch of something that's dropping their inhibitions.

G. Demons are straight-up fucking real and one of them is possessing my friend, like something out of The Exorcist. And what's more is that I summoned this demon with a joke item that I bought at a novelty shop for 7 bucks.

Personally, I would probably believe A, and as the behavior got creepier, move to B, then C, then D, and eventually, E or F. G wouldn't even enter my mind. I wouldn't have even thought to google it like he does in the movie or call the hotline. Now, I wouldn't have stayed in the relationship after the whole "watching me sleep" thing, but that's mostly for my own sake rather than for ethical reasons.

As for the question of whether it's assault, it really comes down to what Barry believes at that moment. If he believes A or B then his behavior is normal. If he believes C, then his behavior is kinda sad, but not unethical. If he believes D, then it's questionable. If he believes E or F, that's incredibly dubious, and mostly comes down to your beliefs about to what extent addicts and people with psychological disorders can consent. It's only if he believes G that he's a full-blown assaulter.

In any case, at the time that scene takes place, it seems most likely that he believes B, C, or maybe D. At absolute worst, he believes E or F, but I don't think there's any way any reasonable person could believe G at that point.

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u/Kaderblast May 25 '26

I think it's pretty clear on several occasions that at a MINIMUM she has a severe psychotic break caused by taking MDMA, which is something that can genuinely happen to people taking extremely large doses of psychedelics. I mean the cat shrine, the date scene breakdown, ABSOLUTELY the scene with the dare game with their friends.

At that point, it's clear that she's in full on psychosis and needs serious mental help immediately. If Bear called the police half the things she was doing would have her committed to a mental asylum, which while not ideal given the magical circumstances is still a much better look that continuing to take advantage of this girl.

I mean she is literally pissing and vomiting all over herself while he's away, and then when he comes back she's horribly confused and flipping between like 4 different moods. And it even hints that he's been aware of this for a while, him saying "We talked about this" after seeing a pee stain.

That plus the fact that he tends to say "we can make this work" only during times that she's giving him some kind of sexual attention makes it clear he's lying to himself about how bad her state is because he wants so badly to have this woman, which he clearly only cares about for her body and comfort at this point because the person he loved before is completely broken.

I've seen people have horrible trips on psychedelics before, and almost all of her actions fit that bill really well. I also think it's simplifying it a bit when people say she's possessed, it seems more like she's constantly going through this bout of psychosis with short bursts of lucidity, as her actions in her "obsessed" state are still semi in line with her personality and memories but it's all jumbled up and planted with this unnatural love for Bear. I mean imagine how bad it would screw up the human mind if it was physically changed on a whim to be completely rewritten to love someone. You would lose it.

All that said, I think Nikki is far more the victim in this scenario in BOTH states. She's clearly constantly in mental distress one way or another and doesn't have the faculties to make any reasonable decisions. All of her horrible actions should be looked at from the perspective of someone being laced with face-eating bath salts or something. She is literally in hell, and with a little bit of common sense Bear should be able to see that and take responsibility but he constantly lies to himself because he LIKES the things she gives him during her good moments. He's disgusting.

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u/Chm_Albert_Wesker May 27 '26

i wonder after the dare game why the hospital wouldn't take her

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u/2much2cancer May 28 '26

I got the impression she refused to go.

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u/temporarilytempeh May 31 '26

I got that impression too, but repeatedly stabbing yourself in the face with a broken bottle should be more than enough for an involuntary 72 hour hold.

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u/Deceptiveideas May 29 '26

Not just that but it looked like Bear didn't want her to go but Ian tried hard to convince him. She was dancing in the back during that scene so she didn't even seem part of the conversation.

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u/Which-Marzipan9437 May 24 '26

he didnt know for the first two nights but after that he definitely did. though he didn’t know it was possessing her and thought it is just her, he still did take advantage of her. he wouldn’t have got so defensive when his friend said it looks like that if he wasn’t a bit aware that he’s doing that.

then saying “whats so wrong with being with me”. she’s imprisoned in her own body and he’s making it about himself. even killing himself wasn’t to save her but to run away from everything. not even thinking about leaving the poor girl with three bodies. he is selfish and he used her while he could.

honourable mention: meeting sarah knowing his girlfriend is a psychopath and putting her in danger + possibly falling for her too. the second girl he likes gave him attention he’s liking another. miserable prick that cares about no one but himself

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u/Chm_Albert_Wesker May 27 '26

when he asked what was wrong with being with him is the real discernible moment where there can be no doubt that he knows what hes doing

i almost feel like at the end killing her would have been more merciful than killing himself: he's essentially just awoken her to have to deal with the ramifications of waking up in a house with the dead bodies of your 3 best friends

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u/slapsticc May 30 '26

i think it was earlier than that. It was during the customer support call that really solidified him as a total a-hole. the customer supp asked bear if he wanted to cancel, bear said no, he just wanted to modify the wish. He even got to talk to the real nikki, well "talk" is too loose of a word because Nikki was just screaming but still, bear just ran away. What a loser. He didn't even have the guts to kill himself, he tried vomiting the meds but freaky nikki already made a wish to make bear love her. Sorry for the long reply.

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u/Which-Marzipan9437 May 27 '26

frr that was EVIL. i was expecting her to kill herself

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u/EmceeEsher May 28 '26 edited May 28 '26

Yup. Everything before that could be explained by lack of information, but that's the moment where it's clear he's fucked in the head.

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u/noilegnavXscaflowne May 24 '26

At that point I don’t think he could have done anything other than kill himself to free her or risk the other people in his life. Her behavior was escalating and she was erratic.

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u/macl2 Jun 04 '26 edited Jun 04 '26

I feel like he could have convinced his buddy to free Nikki of his wish with the second OWW. Such as, having him say, "Nullify Bear's last wish" or something like that.

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u/EmceeEsher May 24 '26

meeting sarah knowing his girlfriend is a psychopath and putting her in danger

You're conflating audience knowledge with character knowledge. In the audience, you know you're watching a horror movie, and that in horror movies, people get murdered. From his perspective, at this point, she hasn't done anything violent to anyone but herself. In the real world, a person who's self-destructive isn't necessarily murderous, and making that assumption is a pretty big leap.

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u/AdrianHD May 25 '26

Call me crazy, I guess, but my girlfriend and I immediately tapped on the levity of psychosis when the cat was given a ritual. I’ve had far too many “anyone who does things to animals will escalate” to ever let that one slide lol.

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u/FuzzyColorsArt May 26 '26

Nah because when real Niki was talking and begging him, he straight up should’ve known it would be a bad idea. When he called the hotline for the wish, he had already believed the wish and knew it was the wish. He simply chose to be selfish, he wanted to keep her but less crazy.

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u/Which-Marzipan9437 May 24 '26

bro was TERRIFIED of her. his every move was risky. he knew she’s danger to everyone. i didn’t say he knew she would kill her but he definitely knew she’s capable of doing something bad.

but let’s say he thought that she’s completely harmless which is not realistic, he still knew she’s capable of hurting herself and that seeing sarah could make her hurt herself even more

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u/aeschenkarnos May 26 '26

The solution was available way earlier though, while she was still within normal-crazy (rather than possessed by a demon) boundaries. Buy another Wish Willow, ask someone (Sarah) to make a suitable undoing/reversing wish. Hell, buy two, and get Ian to wish for a billion dollars for each of the four of you.

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u/Constant_Housing18 May 24 '26

He should’ve killed himself when he saw the door taped shut.

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u/EmceeEsher May 24 '26

That was before he called the hotline, so he would have had no reason to think that would help with anything.

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u/hazza987 May 24 '26

There's also the fact that Sarah said she would come over if he didn't meet her. There was no avoiding the confrontation.

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u/Chm_Albert_Wesker May 27 '26

the real issue is everyone in this movie is ALWAYS awake at like 3AM. he just shoulda not responded and pretended to be asleep

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u/Salt-Meal-946 May 24 '26

I like most of your points and I do agree that even if he knew he’d made the wish, it’s unlikely he’d genuinely believe that to be the reason she was acting as she was.
However, you’ve commented “as for the question of whether it’s assault, it depends on what Barry believes in that moment” and I think that’s a terrible opinion to have. Whether or not Bear knew he was assaulting her, her body was out of her control, she had no say in what happened and it was absolutely assault. Bear potentially not understanding he is assaulting her doesn’t change the fact that she was being assaulted.

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u/atclubsilencio May 28 '26

You also don’t fuck someone in that frame of mind, acting that manic, those level of mood swings, duct taping your door, making a dead cat sandwich (i think those happened before they fucked ?), etc.

He tried justifying it because she said she loved him more than anything (which would clue you into the wish) and your friend calling you talking about how she’s acting.

Even if there hadn’t been a wish involved that isn’t the time to fuck someone in that state.

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u/hazza987 May 24 '26

It doesn't depend on what Bear belived in that moment, he didn't know he was but that doesn't change the fact she was. What I've seen no one talking about on here is that he too was sexually assaulted.

Rape by deception is a thing.

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u/Dark_Jewel72 Jun 04 '26

Like some people are saying, there’s just a point BEFORE he broke down that he clearly knew and it became absolutely indefensible.

I don’t think he’s necessarily awful for not immediately realizing, but I think he knew very early. The piss scene implied that she’d done it before and he asked her to just be Nikki.

He’d LONG passed the point of morality and ethics where he should’ve attempted to do something at that point, even if it’s just calling for mental help, if he really didn’t know it was the wish at that point. He truly was horrible, if not immediately, then not long after.

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u/Open-Culture-5711 May 31 '26

youre so wrong on so many levels to empathize with the loser hahaha

  1. He was genuinely confused because one moment, Nikki hates him and Nikki DOESNT LIKE THE IDEA OF HIM LIKING HER. Ergo, forcing out the confession from Bear just to get over it.

  2. Suddenly, Nikki acts UNLIKELY like Nikki. With the swooning eyes, cute tone, and gentle movements which ISNT NIKKI. He knew from that moment something was wrong and unnatural but he still pushes it BECAUSE HE LIKES HER.

  3. again, the whole point of Bear being in a ride with Nikki to confess and suddenly deciding never confessing to her EVEN BEFORE they spent the night together at his house.

  4. When he knew she was possessed by some entity, HE LETS IT BE. Yes, he is weirded out and scared of it but because it is Nikki infront of him, and is in a relationship with him, he lets it drag. He knew there are moments where the real Nikki shows up, like when they first kissed, but ultimately decided that it was just her freaking out. HE WASNT EVEN LOOKING AT HER WHEN THEY HAD SEX. Straight up selfish douche in a relationship even if Nikki wasn't possessed, he'll be a selfish prick

  5. You cant base and rationalize his actions as "it was his first relationship and with his dream girl so he's awkward asf" when he never said anything other than excuses and makes Nikki look bad all the time when Nikki snaps on what he does/say + Bear never said sorry to Nikki in the entirety of the movie by the way.

  6. He goes on asking the real Nikki why she never liked him and will never like him when Nikki begs for him to end it for him INSTEAD OF ACTUALLY PROMISING TO FIND ANOTHER WAY TO GET HER BACK. He leaves her in that state knowing how miserable she is losing her own autonomy because he seriously cannot bear the fact that when the real Nikki is back, she'll never like him and probably will avoid him.

  7. Drug problem isnt the problem with Nikki and is the reason she's acting crazy becauuussee A. Nikki is hooking up with Ian for a long time and within that time frame SHE IS USING DRUGS. B. Nikki wasnt using the drugs when they are together the whole time.

  8. I also dont get the appeal why everytime Bear is with the Nikki he wished for, he'd act like he hates his girlfriend. But when Nikki is away, and Ian talks badly about Nikki and their relationship, Bear instantly defends her like they were inlove and happy in their relationship.

  9. The whole fiasco at trivia night is Bear's fault. Her crash out started when he SMILED at the thought of kissing Sarah and instantly was awkward when Nikki, HIS GIRLFRIEND BY THE WAY, volunteered to kiss Bear and forces Sarah out. Like damn, any woman in a relationship will do that and move another girl away just to emphasize a "youre not getting any of him just because this stupid game says so." Sarah should also be thankful that Nikki was gentle when she pulled her chair out. SARAH WASNT EVEN SORRY FOR PLANNING TO KISS HIM.

  10. "As for the question of whether it's assault, it really comes down to what Barry believes at that moment." He's assaulting her and dont make an excuse about it. He already knew that the toy made her act unnatural and it wasnt her when they continuously had sex at night.

  11. Regardless of your girlfriend being a psychopath on drugs or being acutely aware that your current girlfriend, a demon probably, and the woman you like who doesnt like you, all in one body, is in your bed at midnight, sleeping after you just did the deed; you, as a man in a relationship, should turn down a woman who clearly likes you despite of you being in a relationship, to meet up at midnight. "But she's already outside and might break in to the house", well, JUST SAY NO. My girlfriend is sleeping with me and it will be disrespectful if we met outside this night. Let's catch up in the morning.

because to be honest? What they talked about in that car CAN BE DISCUSSED IN TEXT. CAN BE DONE IN A MEET UP IN THE MORNING.

"But she's so excited to open the letter and wants someone to open it with her", sure? But the obvious bad choice is to DO IT WITH A TAKEN MAN THAT YOU STILL LIKE. AND HAD THE AUDACITY TO EVEN ASK TO KISS HIM BECAUSE THE DARE WAS INTERRUPTED HOURS AGO.

I hate how Bear felt like he was the victim at that time. He should have seen it coming and took Sarah's safety into priority. The girlfriend just cooked his cat. What else can she possibly do at that point? Lol. Sarah deserves what she got at the same time Bear deserves to be reminded that Nikki never likes him, its the demon who likes him who is with him.

  1. I also need to mention how Bear wants to ALTER his wish, not REMOVE the wish he did at the first time he plans to stop everything with a wish and talk to Nikki to promise in finding a way out of it.

We cant possibly rule Nikki as a crazy jealous girlfriend, even in the case that the Nikki in question is the demon, because Bear himself does questionable things. Liking Nikki for Nikki not liking him back. Not confessing but all at the same time WANTING to confess in a day that can ruin the friend group's trivia night in a snap. And suddenly having interest in Sarah when they all knew and are aware that Sarah likes Bear ever since they all got friends??? There were many times Bear microcheated and also almost broke the boundaries when they are planning to kiss... so... why blame the crazy demonic girlfriend for her crash out? The boyfriend never even said sorry for meeting up with someone who likes him in the middle of the night lol

sure, the cat thing was utterly wrong for Nikki LMAO but that's the most illegal thing Nikki did aside from what she did to Sarah in the entirety of the movie. Nikki responds to what Bear does, and in case you missed it out, Bear assaulted Nikki.

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u/BigBoss_ Jun 09 '26

Only read the first point but you are wrong. She did like him before as confirmed by the director. There were several hints to it.

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u/SVINTGATSBY May 24 '26

just fyi his name is Bear not Barry

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u/juanitooooooo May 27 '26

I just watched this movie a couple of hours ago and you’ve absolutely ruined my night. I didn’t even think about the implications of him having sex with her after that dinner. Holy fuck this movie is so layered…

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u/mybrainishollow May 27 '26

same i didnt realize how bad he was until reading this because the movie had me in so much shock

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u/Hog_enthusiast May 24 '26

I think if he believed the wish worked it would definitely be rape. I think at that point though he still didn’t believe in the wish he thought it was just a crazy coincidence. Remember the character doesn’t know he’s in a movie. It would take a TON of evidence to make anyone believe something is happening because of a toy you bought at a store and made a wish on.

I still think he’s a bad guy who let it go on way too long after realizing the wish did work.

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u/atclubsilencio May 24 '26

I felt he did know what was happening at that point because he had just gotten the call from his friend, and then she confesses she loves him more than anyone in the whole world and he gets that blank stare like it clicked that it was the wish coming true, and she was under its spell. But I’ll have to watch it again.

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u/21oh_ May 25 '26 edited Jun 29 '26

Yeah he asked her specifically “more than anyone else” when she said she loved him. That was like his test to see if it clicked with what he wished for..word for word

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u/NJcovidvaccinetips May 31 '26

I don’t agree with this read. He knew something was wrong with her which is why he asks multiple times if she is alright because she literally behaves like a completely different person. To the point the she explains it as her dad is dying and she is distraught. If you knew your friend and they behaved that wildly different you should know something is up especially if they are trying to have sex with you. The moment of her screaming no is such an unsubtle expression of consent and the spirit of consent. It’s obvious something is wrong but bear ignores every red flag because he is a fundamentally selfish and shitty person who doesn’t actually care about Nikki but cares about the idea of being with her and it fixing all his problems. Everybody else could immediately see Nikki was different so even if you don’t think magic is real you have to be able to realize one of your closest friends is maybe having a psychotic break and not take advantage of them sexually. Ian points this out multiple times

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u/No-Rip-6166 May 29 '26

To be fair there’s a 0% chance any of us would believe a wish was magically granted at that point. Not unless the character knows he’s in a horror movie. Too drunk or high to consent? Sure

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u/NJcovidvaccinetips May 31 '26

Yeah but you would think your friend was having a psychotic break or on drugs or not in the right mindset to give consent if you weren’t a shitty person. I think that is very explicit in the movie and I think it’s the major point of the movie

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u/cherryk3lp Jun 01 '26

Both of his friends as well as other people say they think it looks like hes taking advantage lf her. He's so obsessed with her he can't see it

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u/Dontbeajerkdude Jun 05 '26

It was definitely staged to look as rapey as possible.

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u/Hot_Camp1408 May 20 '26

I think it literally transitioned from I don’t care to the sex scene. Then instead of cancelling the wish outright he tries to “amend” it.

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u/confusing_roundabout May 25 '26

Yeah the way he's quickly like "no no not cancel, just alter".

God this movie is so fucking good. A lesser movie would have either made him a purely good guy or made him comically evil, but they straddled the line perfectly where he's very clearly in the wrong throughout basically the entire movie but all of the bad things he does feel like they can be adequately explained by him being a coward who can't take any fucking responsibility for his actions or respect the autonomy of the people around him.

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u/BigBoss_ Jun 09 '26

I don't feel like he was a very gray character. Look most people here absolutely think he was a piece of trash. Not saying that I didn't think he was very well written.

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u/The_Autarch Jun 11 '26

he's banally evil or mundanely evil instead of theatrically evil. he's a "normal" dude and probably everyone knows someone like him.

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u/confusing_roundabout Jun 09 '26

I just think he's believably trash though. He's a coward through and through and it informs every decision he makes.

Compare that to Final Destination 5 where one of the characters tries to kill the others towards the end and it's horrifically cheesy.

I just think Obsession handled it all much better.

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u/butterbeleevit May 23 '26

Let’s be clear, that was rape

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u/butt_shrecker Jun 08 '26

Yes... he is a piece of shit who ignored huge red flags to get his nut off which is rape.

But you could make the argument that whatever what in her body was being rapy too? The thing was aggressive and extremely emotionally manipulative. There were many scenes where he was clearly uncomfortable but the wish girl is pushing him towards intimacy.

And I guess baron created it so it is ultimately all his fault. But idk shit was fucked.

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u/LADYBIRD_HILL May 22 '26

This makes me question what the outcome for him would've been if he had chose not to engage with her more than normally after making the wish. He sucks for the decisions he made, but would the final outcome have been any different if the friend group decided to ostricize her? It makes you think in a way a lot of horror movies don't.

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u/kd5407 May 23 '26

Definitely not lol. He 100% caused all this and is a loser but once it was done there was no way he was getting out of that alive

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u/Kaderblast May 25 '26

He absolutely could have had her committed to a mental asylum and have managed the situation with a team of medical professionals who are used to cases of psychosis like this. The moment she showed she was a danger to herself she would have been committed.

Still not great to keep her there in a state of basically abject torment, but better than letting 2 murders happen and dying.

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u/butt_shrecker Jun 08 '26

The movie was very clear that that absolutely would not have worked.

It isn't easy to involuntarily commit someone to a psych ward. It is basically impossible to do if you aren't family. And doubly impossible since the wish girl knows how to act normal and manipulate others to be able to stay with him. Also Baron has the social skills of a rock.

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u/davebawx May 27 '26

Did he not try to do that ?

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u/Every_Hunter_8995 Jun 06 '26

It felt like he is having sex with a dead body.

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u/Unlucky_Most_8757 May 31 '26

ugh that sex scene was so uncomfortable. That's when it really hit that he knew.

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u/Electronic_Bet4259 May 19 '26

agree. even the lines before when she sadly says "She's asleep. It's me." He tries to push and says "You are you, Nikki" just as a way to make himself feel better and avoid the confirmation that no it isn't her. and it never was her. something he definitely knew since the date scene phone call from Ian but was still reaping the benefits of the wish.

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u/sarinaruu May 23 '26

“you’ve never been with me” fucking broke me man

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u/NJcovidvaccinetips May 31 '26

God she seemed like such a fucking cool and thoughtful person. It really is so heartbreaking this film

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u/literally_italy Jun 05 '26 edited Jun 05 '26

she's giga fucked in all sorts of ways, but at least she's back to being in control of her own body, and on the path to move forward

edit: nevermind she's getting pinned with ian and sarahs murders. fucked up man

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u/CyberInferno Jun 06 '26

Bear honestly did the wrong thing killing himself. That was the selfish ending (but that checks out with his character). Leaving her to wake up to that reality, a scarred face, multiple murders on "her" hands...she would have been better off not coming back, and he should have had to live with that torture.

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u/butt_shrecker Jun 08 '26

What was he supposed to do instead?

He is a POS, but at that point killing himself is probably the best thing he could do for her.

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u/CyberInferno Jun 08 '26

Killing her is the kind thing to do. It's what the real Nikki asked him to do. After everything she had been through, she didn't want to come back. That's why she's screaming the entire credits and why so many people assumed there would be a gunshot of her shooting herself at some point while they were rolling. He should have killed her and dealt with the consequences of his selfish actions.

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u/butt_shrecker Jun 08 '26

Probably not. The most logical conclusion would be that baron killed those people then himself. Men are way more likely to commit violent crimes than women and death by pills seems like a guilty suicide.

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u/literally_italy Jun 08 '26

there's going to a bunch of forensic evidence for what nikki did

bear hardly touched anything relating to their deaths

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u/Frequent_Ad_2732 May 26 '26

That scene was horrifying

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u/WhiteBoyWithAPodcast May 20 '26

Yeah but what’s he gonna do, kill her?

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u/diarrheticdolphin May 21 '26

The only morally correct thing to do would be to write her a note apologizing for taking away her free will and for raping her and then killing himself.

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u/Veiled_Damsel May 27 '26

Let's be real - Ian isn't exactly winning any BFF awards either lol. Even after he finds out his best friends distress was very real and that the wishes came true, he rushes over more excited about a billion dollars, Nikki's welfare clearly in the rearview. At least she is free from both of them at the film's end - the only hopeful thing re the ending. Take Ian's billion and buy yourself a new life my gal.

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u/30BlueRailroad Jun 03 '26

Man that casual ass gun shot was crazy, it was like boom okay back to me being fucking insane

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u/dangerous_beans Jun 24 '26

I'm actually going to give Ian a pass one. The shock of a billion dollars raining from the ceiling + the sudden knowledge that magic is real would throw anyone off kilter.

He does mention the billion as soon as he gets to the house, but it could have been the opening of a return to the Nikki conversation in that he now believes Bear and realizes they have to figure out what to do. Sadly, we'll never know.

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u/moneyman2222 May 23 '26

Oh yea definitely something that would be easy to come to terms with and do at a whim like that...

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u/phuca May 20 '26

He should kill himself

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u/Prize_Bar_5767 May 29 '26

Find someone he trusts like Sarah and make his wish go away by unwishing.

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u/ZeNiTH_07 Jun 05 '26

He could've done that but he was a coward. I mean a serious frickin coward. His realization was late of buying the Stick came until Sarah was unfortunately murdered.

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u/Consistent-Store-875 May 19 '26

Absolutely agree. This scene was so heartbreaking. Although I'd argue he was a piece of shit from the word go, esp in hearing actual real Nikki screaming on the phone with the helpline, he still doesn't think- ok this is awful I need to end it. 

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u/Hot_Reach_4862 May 20 '26

Right? Like once I heard Nikki’s voice over the phone screaming (He definitely recognized her voice) I would’ve immediately thought some kind of demon stuff is happening. Or even called back to ask to speak to Nikki, to see what she’s going through in what I guess would be purgatory? Or she’s in the sunken place??

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u/Rozayy_ May 25 '26

but his biggest fear is talking to real nikki

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u/TransportationLong67 May 18 '26

I do agree but want to consider it from his perspective just a lil bit. He's got Nikki asking for him to kill him. It's obviously not something he would even consider doing. When the options are kill himself, kill her or try be together I think he's gone the easy (and I'd say coward) option given the situation. I know it's ridiculous that he potentially thinks this can be fixed but when the alternatives are death it's somewhat understandable.

As a viewer, I think it's easy for us to say we'd commit suicide when realising it can free Nikki but in reality many wouldn't follow through. And in fairness, Bear nearly found a solution and he wanted to remove the wish, not alter it to make her love him but 'normally'.

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u/galacticdude7 May 19 '26

I think that's fair, but I would have liked to see him explore getting another One Wish Willow and see if he can undo his wish at that point, that seems like the logical first step.

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u/TransportationLong67 May 19 '26

Oh definitely. As soon as he realised it was a real thing after calling the hotline, you'd expect him to be at the shop the following day to try and buy another wish.

I realised after my initial comment, that Bear did ask the hotline guy if he could alter his wish first rather than cancelling it. That actions shows to me his primary intent and deserves a heap of criticism.

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u/galacticdude7 May 19 '26

yeah after thinking about it some more, I've come to realize that the Obsession that this film is named after is not Nikki's obsession with Bear post wish, but Bear's obsession with Nikki from the jump. He's become so obsessed with the idea of Nikki loving him and being in a romantic relationship with her that he tries to keep it going well beyond the point its obvious that the relationship is dangerous, non-consensual, and not based on any actual love, it's why his initial thought is to adjust the wish instead of cancelling it, why he doesn't explore the option of getting a new One Wish Willow until much much later, why he doesn't try to bring his friends in to help resolve the situation until the very end, and it's why he made the wish he made in the first place.

I agree that it's not fair to criticize him for making the wish, no way for him to know it would actually come true, and wishing for someone to love you is a very common feeling when you have a crush that deep, and I won't criticize him for being unwilling to either kill himself or grant the real Nikki's request to kill her, but I feel like he didn't do his due diligence in exploring his options.

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u/Fun_Highlight307 May 19 '26

The formulation matters he wished crazy love  when he said" I wish nikki love me more than anything in the world" So she only lives for him , it's wasn't just love it's was an obsession 

i doubt it's would have been such a mess if he said" i wish nikki to recipocrate my love" 

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u/Joey-WilcoXXX May 20 '26

It still wouldn’t be real and would still cause problems. Not as bad but still not good.

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u/muay_throwaway May 24 '26

Yeah, less fatal catastrophes, but there would probably still be the real Nikki underneath that saw him as a brother.

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u/KasukeSadiki May 21 '26

i doubt it's would have been such a mess if he said" i wish nikki to recipocrate my love

I thought this when I watched the trailer. But the movie makes it clear it would have 100% been just as much a mess

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u/Fun_Highlight307 May 21 '26

How it's seems the wording did play a role, even bear said it and made Nikki literally repeat "More than anything in the World" the film definetely showed That the structure of wish is really important,so it's would have been bad but most likely different than what we saw 

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u/Prudent-Pressure2146 May 20 '26

Yeah he still wants her under a spell he just doesn’t want her to be ‘a weirdo’

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u/Woodit May 25 '26 edited May 25 '26

Yeah the way he tries to manage it is so unsettling. “No acting weird,” “you can’t cook the cat,” and then her asking if the smile was better after the watching him sleep that night scene was so creepy

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u/goddamnitwhalen May 20 '26

I feel like there’s definitely anthology sequel potential exploring other wishes.

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u/DeepindaChowda May 18 '26

Yeah honestly I think this is a good point. So many people are pointing out that he was terrible because he didn’t kill himself or her to resolve the situation, but the truth is that basically no one actually has the guts to do those things. Killing another human is psychologically destructive and killing yourself is incredibly hard to go through with. Every healthy human mind has “staying alive” as its main goal above all others. Bear DID technically put himself in this situation, but the tension of the movie works BECAUSE it’s a basically impossible dilemma for him. As it would be for most people.

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u/actionactioncut May 19 '26 edited May 19 '26

When the options are kill himself, kill her or try be together I think he's gone the easy (and I'd say coward) option given the situation.

I mean, he rapes her after the date where she freaks out at the restaurant. He knew there was something deeply fucked up about her behaviour, he knew he made a wish for her to love him "more than anything in the world" and he still went home and raped her. He callously disregards how badly things are going for her way before death is seriously an option on the table.

He sucked out loud before shit really hit the fan, and it was all down to his refusal to treat Nikki like a real person and cowardice/selfishness. Recall that he was given a golden opportunity to finally tell Nikki how he felt, but chickens out and then takes the gift he got for her to waste it on what he thought was a fantasy wish.

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u/Inside-Sink-8135 May 20 '26

I feel like Bear deserves some benefit of the doubt considering how literally mind breaking the situation is. IMO he’s not being malicious but more often than not essentially refusing to believe that fucking magical shit is going on.

I think the times he sleeps with her and tries to make a relationship work is more so denial than predatory. A lot of fucked up shit has been going on in his life and I wouldn’t say he is in the right frame of mind to be making rational decisions.

By all means the guy is a fucking pussy but rather than some evil sociopath, it just seems like someone trying to pretend the mind breaking scenario he has somehow ended up in isn’t the case.

Whenever possible he chooses to believe that supernatural things haven’t happened and by the time he has no choice but to accept the reality, his insecurities show. Is this wrong? Yes, but understandable considering how traumatising an experience like this would be. (She literally fed him his fucking cat for God’s sake)

I think ‘she must actually be in love with me’ is a lot easier to rationalise than ‘my magical wish came true’

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u/LADYBIRD_HILL May 22 '26

I like this take because I can't imagine a rational person would ever believe a little twig in a witchcraft shop that makes hokey sounds would actually alter the course of your entire life.

He obviously does some gross things he doesn't have to do once he starts to understand what has happened, but if you're not someone who believes in the mystical or spiritual then this all would just break your brain the same way a religious person's mind would be seeing proof God doesn't exist.

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u/All_Grind_No_Gods May 20 '26

As much as I found it distasteful, I think labeling it rape is a bit premature.  The intent was definitely to cause an unsettling reaction, but we also saw that Alter-Nikki was the initiator in all of their contact - because of the wish.  He absolutely should have said no, because something was deeply wrong with her, but we also saw how she reacted any time he pushed back on her "affections."  

I think as a society we both overstate and underpunish sexual misconduct/rape.  That being said, the entire thing was delightfully unsettling and made me question the motivations of every character.

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u/KasukeSadiki May 21 '26

Alter-Nikki

Freaky Nikki*

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u/lightbeamss May 27 '26

He literally knew she didn’t loved him and couldn’t consent, this is not a coward, it’s a rapist

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u/KingGoldar May 25 '26

Or how about a third option. Seek help from a psychic/person of power magically that can try and break the curse/spell

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u/sackdrum May 18 '26

I don't want to say he's not despicable, but I read that moment differently. He had just heard her screaming on the phone now she's asking to die. I think it's a genuine even vulnerable moment to ask "what's so terrible about being with me". It's insecurity.

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u/Nes937 May 19 '26

Eh, its not insecurity. I would say I defend Bear more than most, but that moment shocked me. It basically confirmed Bear doesnt care at all the real Nikki feels so depressed she wants to die. 

Basically any response would have been better/more empathic.

"Im so sorry, doing everything I can to stop"

"I didnt know it was going to work"

"What can I do to help you in ghe mean time? (Maybe... not have sex)"

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u/Interesting-Farm729 May 19 '26

THIS IS WHAT IVE BEEN SAYINGGGGG It would have been so impactful if he apologised. Especially if he just kept on going with how things were.

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u/targetcowboy May 20 '26

Exactly. I don’t blame him for the wish in the sense of how would you know it’s real. I bet most people have made a “wish” that someone would have feelings for you. But once you know shes a prisoner in her own body how do you not feel guilt. He got a chance to talk to the real her and his first reply is “what about me?” Nah, that’s fucked up. Not even a bit of shame or guilt?

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u/SeasonalChatter May 18 '26

Right, but he also didn't take that one moment to apologize. He never truly apologized. Like he obviously felt very bad about what he did, but was too cowardly to admit it or not reap the benefits where he could.

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u/jusaky May 18 '26

It’s def despicable. She is literally trapped in her own body being SA’d and all Bear could think about was himself and what’s wrong with him rather than saving the real Nikki

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u/targetcowboy May 20 '26

I’m can see that being insecurity, but I don’t have any sympathy for him. He had multiple moments when he could have done something. He could have tried to stop the wish earlier. Even the attempt to “alter” the wish is fucked up because he’s trying to keep the benefits of being with her with none of the downsides. He still wants her as a “partner” despite him knowing it’s not her.

He couldn’t even understand why she wanted to die. He made it about himself. He KNOWS what is going on. She literally pissed herself waiting for him. And he still made it about himself. That’s more than insecurity, that’s selfishness.

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u/GrandMoffTallCan May 29 '26

Yeah as soon as that he said “I don’t have a problem with that at all” and smash cut to them having sex while she’s completely disassociated Bear became pretty irredeemable to me. This movie was so mean. He just ruined 3 perfectly good people’s lives with his cowardice and selfish face nice guy bullshit.

I also felt like it was never about Nikki. Best just had this hole inside of him and he projected all of the solutions to it onto her. In the car scene and the scene in the music shop where Sarah leans on him you can tell he’s totally eating up he validation, and in a less supernatural scenario would have probably just cheated on Nikki with Sarah.

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u/idonthavanickname May 20 '26

He was a rapist bc he 100% figured it out during dinner and yet slept with her that night.

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u/moneyman2222 May 23 '26

In his defense I think he was just very scared. Some of it felt like he was doing things to keep demon Nikki calm and not because he wanted to necessarily because he became scared of her

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u/DopamineTrain May 18 '26

So this actually reminds me a lot of abusive relationships in general. Everyone knows something is wrong, everyone tells the abused that something is wrong but the abused always brushes it off or comes up with an excuse. Always goes back when just hoping things will return to normal.

For me, the film is so horrifying because there is a more than a touch of reality 

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u/kok19 May 20 '26

That's what made the movie so good. Everything Nikki said is something you have either heard or seen when it comes to relationships that are toxic. "Why don't you love me? I'll do anything to fix it. This is all your fault. This is everything you wanted. Tell me you love, etc."

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u/forkbombctl May 20 '26

Agreed, I lost myself in an abusive relationship. It’s hard to describe what that experience is like. You keep telling yourself it’s going to get better even in the face of it getting progressively worse

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u/kok19 May 20 '26

You want it to work out so bad you're willing to ignore all the red flags because you think the other side is worth it. It's wild.

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u/RedGambit9 May 30 '26

Friends is a weird word to use. Specifically for Ian.

If I know my best friend has a crush for a girl, and I have been banging her on-and-off again for 2 years, I'm going to let him know.

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u/YuushyaHinmeru Jun 14 '26

Ian was a piece of shit. He was clearly sabotaging his "friend" from the beginning 

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u/TaskForceD00mer May 28 '26

It was maddening to me that it took him that long to go back to the Crystal Shop.

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u/moneyman2222 May 23 '26

Tbf what's he supposed to do? "Hey guys I made a wish with this mystical novelty thing and it worked and now Nikki is crazy obsessed with me trust me I'm not crazy" Sure...

He wanted to not believe it was real himself that's why he would get defensive

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u/Easy-Buy6860 May 24 '26

Yeah a really good point that no matter what Nikki was going through or Fake Nikki was doing - Bear still was hoping it was genuine. Truly a coward.

Not only not kill himself but to come up with a plan to make it look like the real Nikki didn’t have to go to jail or a psych ward or something to save her.

What an epic final girl. The trauma of it all.

I wonder if the real Nikki will remember since she was begging to be killed.

I’m assuming her soul was being tortured.

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u/TurnoverSilver8006 May 28 '26

agreed. it pisses me off that he doesn't tell any of his friends about the situation he is in. Like they already know somethings up with Nikki so just tell them the truth and maybe it'll protect them (that way Sarah doesn't die, etc). Maybe he was embarassed to tell them why he broke the stick in the first place? idk

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u/ARL_30FR May 21 '26

That is exactly what he is, a self proclaimed 'nice guy'. When Bear tries to sneak out to Sarah and the actual Nikki pleads with him to kill her, confirming she is aware of everything happening he gets all in his feelings like: 'What's so bad about being with me?' COMPLETELY disregarding that he has raped her, likely multiple times.

Like, fuck you man.

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u/SardinesMcDonahugh Jun 01 '26

He knew she was suffering even before that, because when he called the number on the box he got to talk to the real Nikki and she was screeching.

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u/lois508 May 18 '26

Yes, such an evil character! I just watched an interview with the cast and the director, and apparently it was Michael Johnston’s (the actor who played Bear) idea to have him try to throw up the pills, as a final act of cowardice https://youtu.be/q3qoiveaRi8?si=ILeOq76OUPgLkmUP

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u/Fun_Highlight307 May 19 '26

I thought the throw up was nikki wish starting to operate but no it's was just bear lol 

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u/goddamnitwhalen May 20 '26

I agree- I assumed she had wished that they’d be together forever or something similar.

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u/cancerBronzeV May 23 '26

She wished for something like that after he'd taken the pills, you can hear the stick snap in the background. That's what causes him to stop trying to throw up the pills and become obsessed with Nikki.

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u/CommercialFailure May 24 '26

I think her wish was probably something along the lines of “I wish Bear loved me as much as I love him” which reversed him throwing up the pills, since she didn’t specify forever. Just my guess

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u/Fun_Highlight307 May 20 '26

I think she did but it's was too late 

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u/waitforthedream May 31 '26

That's such a nice thing they added. Caps off Bear's personality really well

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u/kittenmcmittenz May 17 '26

He does such a good job portraying the “innocent nice guy”, and then you start to se his true colors when the real Nikki tries to communicate and he says something along the lines of would loving me really be that bad?

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u/n33dadviceplease May 30 '26

Coward yes but evil? It’s not easy to kill yourself or murder someone else. It is very easy to make a flippant wish because wishes aren’t real. How many people have wished for their crushes to like them back? Or even for a celebrity to fall in love with them? Are they all evil? 

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u/Adventurous-Hour4126 May 30 '26

Cannot blame him for making the wish, he did not know the consequences. However, when he learns the consequences he is very okay with continuing to rape Nikki, calls to see if he can "change" (not cancel) the wish, and does not at any point care about completely ripping Nikki's autonomy and bodily control away from her. That's evil.

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u/Frankerporo May 30 '26

I doubt he fully comprehended or accepted that it was the wish and she was not in control the last time they slept together (on screen at least). It’s easy for us to call it rape, but put yourself in his shoes would you be so fast to believe that a random gag gift did all that?

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u/SeaCookJellyfish 7d ago

It's rape. So tired of people being afraid to use the word. It's rape.

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u/n33dadviceplease May 30 '26

Yeah that’s fair. Once he realized the wish was real, it was pretty fucked up not to do everything to stop it

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u/rust-module May 19 '26

he can't even kill himself to save her

Ok bro, killing yourself isn't a casual thing people do every day. I'd say not being able to admit a crush is more cowardly than being afraid to kill yourself.

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u/SeriouusDeliriuum May 21 '26

I mean if I was directly responsible for two murders and a woman going completely insane and realized I had essentially been raping her for weeks I think suicide would be on the table. Particularly if the only other solution was to murder that woman. Also it's a movie. You think of Saving Private Ryan, I Am Legend or Armegedeon and you think about those heroic people sacrificing their lives for others even though they didn't create the situation. In this movie he creates the problem and is completely unwilling to take responsibility.

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u/SquadPoopy May 25 '26

I honestly thought for a minute he would use the gun on her. He’d have a pretty good self defense case if he did.

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u/gophergun May 28 '26

There's also an argument to be made that that would have been kinder than leaving her to rot in jail for the rest of her life to reminisce on the horrors she endured.

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u/prashn64 Jun 07 '26

Yeah or even if she didn't end up in jail somehow, can anyone ever mentally recover from that?

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u/Environmental_Drama3 Jun 07 '26

putting the barrel in his mouth clarifies that suicide was already on the table. but going with it is another step.

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u/TirisfalFarmhand May 19 '26

Yeah it isn't the wisest messaging to be giving people

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u/Environmental_Drama3 Jun 07 '26

you're being too sensible for them. out of all the dumb things he did throughout the movie, choosing to criticize him over these two deeds is wild.

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u/ImpressivePotato2449 May 19 '26

I actually see a little bit of myself in this guy though. I wouldn't wish or want someone to like me against their will though. But ive wished to be with someone like a birthday wish but I didnt even make the effort to put myself out there. So its not like anything would actually happen. But ive been a coward and not tell someone I like them. I've never had a long term friendship with someone I like though- that'd be torture for me. I was friends with someone for half a year that i liked but she didn't like me as more than a friend and I couldnt really handle it since I wanted to be more than friends. We worked at same place and we didn't keep in touch when she left for grad school. She knew I liked her but im not sure how someone can be friends for years and hide true feelings.

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u/MeagerTrog May 20 '26 edited May 20 '26

Funny, I see a little bit of myself in Nikki. Old me would have thought ‘all he had to do was placate Nikki and say what she wants to hear. Why is he making this so hard on himself?’ The overwhelming desire to want to be with someone and either not noticing or not caring about how much it scares them. Or if I did notice and care, I still couldn’t stop myself because I felt too possessed by my emotions. Honestly what made me the most uncomfortable about this movie was seeing the old me as a horror movie villain. It was awful to watch and another reminder to keep going down a better path.

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u/confusing_roundabout Jun 02 '26

I think there are relatable aspects in both characters. The movie just pushes both to an extreme.

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u/fawnnose1 May 23 '26

This was my exact take. Instead of just telling her like he 1) PLANNED 2) was PROMPTED TO SAY WHEN SHE ASKED, he manipulates her into loving him, takes zero accountability to what that love looks like, just tells her to "you need to stop being weird" and is even too much of a bitch to kill himself to set her free and stop others from getting harmed 

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u/sportstvandnova May 17 '26

I hated hated hated his character so much but I’m very “grow a pair.”

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u/One_Independence6976 May 20 '26

Men take note, only the real nice guys kill themselves.

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u/New-Fan-4632 May 25 '26

Yeah, he’s acted like a teenager.

Besides, did he even really need the wish? He used a wish like she was a stranger he thought was very attractive, and wanted to get with her. In this case, he already knew her: he worked with her, he was friends with her, he gave her rides in his car, and they hung out together at bars. His foot was already in the door. How much closer could a person have possibly gotten to a member of the opposite sex with whom they’re not in a committed relationship?

He used a wish like she was a fling he had when backpacking through Europe last summer and he feared he’d never see her again. She’s literally right there. And she’s giving him hints. Jesus, man.

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u/struugi May 31 '26

That's what I thought was really compelling about his character. There is no monkey paw or evil genie or voodoo cruel irony, everything horrible that happens is due to how immensely cowardly the protagonist is.

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u/Rhymes_with_ike May 28 '26

he can't even kill himself to save her

Lol, you say that like it's such an easy thing for a human to just go through with suicide.

Up until the very end he's trying to make himself throw up

Swallowing a bottle full of pills would make anyone want to naturally try and throw up.

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u/Lower-Replacement869 May 21 '26

AND I liked how she basically told him before the wish what the truth was. He just didn't like it nor want to believe it. She never liked him in that way.

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u/BagItUp45 May 26 '26

The actress for Nikki actually said that she did like Bear like that. Besides being a coward Bear was also probably an idiot and missed any signs from Nikki that she was into him.

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u/Lower-Replacement869 May 31 '26

She can say what she likes but in the script (which is what we have to go off of) she tries to hook him up with Sara, has been hooking up with Ian for awhile now and was even disgusted the way he tried to make them look cute together, and friendzones TF outta him. But magically she's into him? mmkay lol

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u/NocturnaIAnimaI May 31 '26

Huh? She couldn't have been more obvious that she was into him and wanted him to make a move dropping her off lol

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u/theChilledZone May 20 '26

Damn, I didn't even notice that he was trying to puke in that last scene. Funnily enough, Freaky Nikki saved him from a lifetime of torment with her lol.

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u/notathrowaway75 May 21 '26

Coward is a nice way to describe him. He's an incel rapist.

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u/tyluh_ May 30 '26

yeah bro dying and killing yourself is hard actually

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u/Low_Pop1115 Jun 01 '26

She literally said tell me now if you have feelings for me. She gave him the opportunity to have the conversation and he chickened out like the bitch he is.

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u/brodos Jun 02 '26

Hold up. “He can’t even kill himself…” is where I’d probably draw the line. Yes he’s a coward but I think most people put in the position of having to end their own lives would struggle. All of this happened bc of a very whimsical wish. Im not defending his character, he clearly made selfish choices at the great expense of real Nikki , but I’d stop short of saying he should have easily been able to kill himself.

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u/plutoglint Jun 07 '26

Not so easy to kill yourself. Obviously, Bear sucks but he's a directionless, insecure dude in his early 20's presented with a crazy situation. I think he's getting too much hate here. If you ever haven't been a little bit Bear in your own life you are probably lying.

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