Many fans are convinced that Weapons is a sequel to Barbarian, and the cast and writer Zach Cregger are setting the record straight.
“That’s not entirely accurate,” Cregger, 44, exclusively told Us Weekly of Weapons being a sequel to the 2022 horror at the film’s premiere on Thursday, July 31. “There’s no Easter eggs in this film.”
While Weapons is not “not affiliated with Barbarian,” the writer teased there could be a connection.
“I do think that there is a world where Weapons can expand,” he explained.
Horror movies may tend to congregate in the fall around October, but scary flicks are always in season. This week, I Know What You Did Last Summer is reviving the classic horror franchise with a sequel that doubles as a remake. It’s too soon to say how that flick will compare with the best summer […]
While Cregger doesn’t “want to say too much,” the idea of creating a connected film universe wasn’t something he planned on executing.
“It sounds weird, and I don’t fancy myself that kind of a filmmaker where I have my own universe. It feels weird to me,” he told Us. “But I do think there’s other stories to be told about some of the characters in this movie.”
Without wanting to give too much away, Cregger hinted fans will “probably have an idea of” what he’s referring to.
The filmmaker also stated Weapons was not based on a true story.
Cregger made his directorial debut with Barbarian in 2022. The thriller starred Georgina Campbell, Bill Skarsgård and Justin Long. In the film, a woman named Tess (Campbell) unknowingly rents a home with a dark secret. Things get mysterious when the property is accidentally double-booked by a man (Skarsgård).
Zach Cregger VALERIE MACON / AFP
Following the success of Barbarian, Cregger wrote Weapons, which follows 17 kids from the same classroom who mysteriously disappear overnight at the exact same time. Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Cary Christopher, Alden Ehrenreich, Austin Abrams, Benedict Wong and Amy Madigan are in the cast.
When asked about the fans’ speculation about a connection between Barbarians and Weapons, Abrams, 28, confessed he was not sure.
“I don’t really know about that,” Abrams told Us.
As the cast and crew bonded, Abrams gushed about how great of an experience it was to work alongside a talented group.
“I would say I more so learn through watching other people work,” he said, highlighting experiences with Ehrenreich and Cregger. [Cregger is] so smart and he knows what he wants, but also he’s really open to collaborating and doing something different.”
While Weapons is a horror film, Abrams shared that the on-set environment had “a lot of laughs” thanks to Cregger’s humorous script.
“I find his writing to be really funny, so we were laughing mostly,” he said.
Christopher, 9, echoed similar sentiments, saying the set “did not feel as scary as it looks” on screen.
“Although at some points I could see it was going to turn out very scary,” he told Us. “It was a very fun project to work on.”
Weapons hits theaters on Friday, August 8.
