Photo Credit: Markiplier Studios Iron Lung Productions
Markiplier’s horror feature Iron Lung, which has defied box office expectations since its January release, will debut exclusively on YouTube soon. The filmmaker confirmed this news during a panel at Cannes.

Markiplier’s Iron Lung hits YouTube in May

The movie will be available for purchase on YouTube starting May 31, a deliberately different approach from traditional streaming. Markiplier, who built a career of over 37 million subscribers on the platform, framed the decision as one of principle. “I’m pretty loyal to it,” he said of YouTube during a Deadline-moderated panel at Cannes.

The digital premiere follows a theatrical performance that few predicted. Iron Lung opened in cinemas on January 30 and has since crossed the 50 million mark globally. Its budget was 4 million. The movie reached audiences almost entirely through Markiplier’s social media footprint, with practically no marketing spend behind it.

Markiplier worked as producer, writer, director, and lead actor on Iron Lung. It’s an adaptation of David Szymanski’s indie horror game of the same name. The official synopsis states, “the story unfolds in a post-apocalyptic future following ‘The Quiet Rapture’, an event that causes stars and habitable planets to vanish. A desperate attempt to explore an ocean of blood on a desolate moon unfolds when a convicted individual is sealed inside a decaying submarine nicknamed the Iron Lung — a descent into dread that becomes as psychological as it is physical.”

The cast includes Caroline Rose Kaplan, Troy Baker, and Elsie Lovelock. While Markiplier self-distributed the film in the United States, he struck a partnership with Piece of Magic Entertainment for international territories. Those markets include Germany, Austria, Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Czechia, Slovakia, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

Speaking at Cannes, Markiplier also addressed his next steps. He said he does not intend to work on another feature for “at least one year,” citing a desire to spend time with his wife. However, he indicated that a return is not far off. “Next year I’ll be working on something,” he said.

Originally reported by Devanshi Basu on ComingSoon.net.