“Weapons” A Bold and Intriguing Mystery That’s Not To Be Missed

Once I started seeing the trailers for the latest horror mystery “Weapons,” I was automatically hooked. The trailers really didn’t reveal too much of the movie and kept mostly everything vague - which is how a horror mystery should be marketed.

And, after finally getting a chance to check this one out, I can easily say that this bizarre, weird mystery will easily find a spot in my top films of the year list!

When all but one child from the same class mysteriously vanishes on the same night at exactly the same time, a community is left questioning who or what is behind their disappearance.

This new horror mystery delivers a great blend of horror, suspense and dark humor - and the dark humor that’s scattered throughout the movie can really give you a good chuckle in an unexpected way. “Weapons” also features a compelling, unique story that gives us some truly effective jump scares.

The story is rather unique in a way as the movie is told in chapters. This utilizes a non-linear narrative structure with multiple perspectives, where each chapter focuses on a different character’s POV. This also allows the story to unfold in a layered way, revealing different aspects of the mystery surrounding the disappearance of the children.

This unique format of telling the story really works extremely well and actually also helps build the tension and suspense that surrounds the entire movie. The chapters also add a great deal of depth and intrigue, especially when we get introduced to the memorable and scene-stealing Aunt Gladys character.

The Aunt Gladys character is definitely one of the most memorable characters in this movie. The character is portrayed by Amy Madigan, who absolutely steals the show, as she can go from being slightly comedic (in a dark and twisted way) to menacing in a split second so incredibly well. There’s nothing else I will say about this particular character since I don’t want to go into spoiler territory.

“Weapons”, for the most part, is really unpredictable and there are several twists and turns scattered throughout the movie that you won’t see coming. The latest horror mystery also delivers quite a few memorable moments, such as an insane convenience store attack and an ending that can go completely off the rails.

Overall, “Weapons” is one of the biggest surprises of the year, especially for the horror genre. The entire movie delivers an eerie feeling that helps keep you invested in this movie and does an outstanding job keeping you at the very edge of your seat until the ending!

Cast: Josh Brolin (Archer Graff); Julia Garner (Justine Gandy); Cary Christopher (Alex Lilly); Alden Ehrenreich (Paul Morgan); Austin Abrams (James); Benedict Wong (Marcus Miller); Amy Madigan (Gladys); Toby Hess (Ed Locke); Sara Paxton (Erica); Justin Long (Gary); June Diane Raphael (Donna Morgan).

Writer/director: Zack Creeger (Barbarian; if you haven’t had the chance to check out his movie “Barbarian,” I highly recommend it for those who love this genre).

Trivia: “Weapons” was originally scheduled for release on January 16, 2026, but massive acclaim from test screenings convinced Warner Brothers/New Line to push the date up. Netflix was ready to pay more money upfront than New Line, but an assured theatrical release and New Line’s track record with the horror genre were the better selling points.

MPA: Rated R for strong bloody violence and grisly images, language throughout, some sexual content and drug use   (128 minutes)

Make sure to keep on checking my Wyoming County Press Examiner reviews page on Facebook for the latest updates of what I have planned on the review front. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKHySfXqN0I

• Netflix was ready to pay more money upfront than New Line, but an assured theatrical release and New Line's track record with horror were the better selling points.

• To further capitalize on the themes of the movie, theaters listed showtimes at 2:17, the same time the children in the film vanish.

• Zach Cregger revealed through an interview with the Associated Press that certain scenes that he thought of as "so funny" were to be cut if the jokes in question didn't elicit laughs from test audiences. "If the humor is coming from an authentic reaction that a character's having, then it works," Cregger said. "There's a lot of jokes that didn't make it into the movie that I thought were going to be so funny. And then we did a test screening, and nobody laughed and I'm like, OK, it's gotta go."

• Deadline Hollywood reported that New Line Cinema won the spec script in a bidding war against, allegedly, Universal, Netflix and Sony/TriStar. The Hollywood Reporter detailed that parts of the deal were an eight-figure sum of money, a guaranteed greenlight for production, final-cut privileges for Cregger, interest in a backend plot and, most importantly in closing the deal, the guarantee of a theatrical release. Insiders called it a unprecedented deal in modern times and is compared to M. Night Shyamalan deals, post- The Sixth Sense (1999).

• According to Deadline, Universal Pictures was the only other studio, aside from New Line, to have gotten close to getting the deal. Jordan Peele would have produced through his Monkeypaw studio with Universal, but the offer made by them was 7 million dollars less than New Line's proposal. Peele was supposedly ready to provide that amount of money out of his contractual back end, but Universal were uneasy about the budget as a business proposition and walked away. Peele and Cregger shared the same manager, Peter Principato, which might have caused a conflict of interest. Peele later parted ways with his management: Artists First.

• At several points in the film, the same scene is seen from different character's perspectives, showing slightly different details as a way of showing how characters sometimes see the same moment differently. An example of this is the bar scene between Justine and Paul. While she sees the moment as Paul coming straight to the bar and joining her, he sees the same moment with her being so interested in him that she stands up from the bar and walks to him as soon as he steps through the door; additionally, Justine recalls the two exchanging a quick, platonic hug in the bar, whereas Paul remembers the hug as a lingering, lovers' embrace.

• The movie was originally scheduled for release on January 16th, 2026, but massive acclaim from test screenings convinced Warner Bros. to push the date to August 8th, 2025.