Horror fans have been clamouring for some details for Barbarian director Zack Cregger's mysterious second feature, Weapons, and we finally have some idea of what to expect following a screening of the first trailer at CinemaCon.
Up until now, the only information we've been given about the movie is that it was developed as “a multi and inter-related story horror epic that tonally is in the vein of Magnolia, the 1999 actor-crammed showcase from filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson.”
Per Variety, the movie stars The Fantastic Four: First Steps' Julia Garner as an elementary school teacher who arrives at work one morning to discover that every single member of her class is missing. The trailer continues with a child's voiceover telling us that, "Mrs. Gandy’s room was totally empty. Because the night before, at 2.17 am, every kid woke up, got out of bed, walked downstairs and into the dark, and they never came back."
Variety writes, "We can’t stress how upsetting some of this footage was – featuring children sleepwalking giddily as if possessed, running into the pitch dark. The final moments of the trailer revealed a terrifying figure hiding deep in the woods, one that looked overwhelmingly like a female clown."
There's still a lot we don't know about Weapons, and it sounds like even those in attendance have decided not to disclose everything revealed in the trailer.
As part of the presentation, New Line Cinema boss Richard Brener described the film as "intriguing and unpredictable, with a nice helping of batshit insane", while Cregger said the project was "a movie that unravels and reinvents itself as it goes."
Barbarian proved to be a huge hit with a $45 million worldwide gross, establishing Cregger as one of the most in-demand young directors in Hollywood and earning him a juicy deal with the studio. He also appeared during Sony’s presentation on Monday to tease his new Resident Evil movie, which he promised would be very faithful to the original game in the classic survival horror series.
Could we see Cregger helm a comic book movie at some point?
While appearing on Bloody Disgusting's podcast back in 2022, Cregger revealed that he has completed a "Batman- adjacent" script, and would love the opportunity to develop it for the screen.
"The thing I'd love to do next... I've actually written a movie that takes place in the DC Universe. Which is so not normally my thing; I'm not a superhero guy - I just couldn't stop thinking about this one story that kind of takes place in a Batman-adjacent thing. And so I wrote it, and I'm utterly obsessed with it."
Cregger didn't share any specifics on his story, but during a more recent interview with Discussing Film, he described the script as the "best thing I've ever written," and addressed the likelihood of it being brought to the attention of DC Studios now that James Gunn and Peter Safran are in charge.
"If I got the call, I would drop everything and go make that movie in a heartbeat," he said. "It’s my favorite thing I’ve ever written. I love it, and I’m dying to make it. I have not talked to James Gunn in my whole life. I don’t know him but I would certainly love to meet him and have the conversation. Who knows man?"
Weapons has been rated “R” for: “Strong bloody violence and grisly images, language throughout, some sexual content and drug use.”
The movie also stars Josh Brolin, Alden Ehrenreich, Benedict Wong and June Diane Raphael, and is set to open in theaters August 8 via New Line Cinema.