Zach Cregger Says the WEAPONS Prequel About Aunt Gladys Will “Stand on Its Own”
With Weapons scaring up major success this year, writer and director Zach Cregger is already looking ahead to expanding his chilling universe, but he’s doing it carefully.
The filmmaker confirmed that a prequel centered on the eerie Aunt Gladys, played by Amy Madigan, is in development and promises it will be a story with its own identity.
“It’s crossed my mind,” Cregger told TheWrap when asked if diving into the villain’s backstory could spoil her mystique. “But I think that the Gladys story is such an interesting story that I think it’s going to feel very separate and stand on its own two feet, and I don’t think it’s going to diminish Weapons.”
In Weapons, nearly every child in Justine Gandy’s (Julia Garner) third-grade class vanishes after mysteriously waking up and running into the night at exactly 2:17 a.m. The haunting mystery unfolds from multiple perspectives, including performances by Madigan, Josh Brolin, Austin Abrams, Cary Cristopher, and Benedict Wong , as the horrifying truth behind the disappearances slowly comes to light.
The character of Aunt Gladys quickly became a fan favorite character, with audiences obsessed over her cryptic presence and twisted motives. Cregger has clearly noticed that enthusiasm.
“The thrill of my life to see Amy and what’s been going on with all of this has been so great. I can only hope that there’s a lot of Halloween Gladyses out there,” he said, hinting at just how much fun he’s had seeing fans embrace the film’s creepiest figure.
After reports surfaced from that New Line Cinema was in early talks for the Weapons prequel, Cregger revealed he had already been preparing the story. “I had it kind of in my pocket before the movie came out,” he explained. “I was ready.”
While plot details remain tightly under wraps, Cregger’s comments suggest that this Gladys origin story won’t just be a companion piece, it’ll be a standalone nightmare all its own.
For horror fans still haunted by Weapons, the idea of diving deeper into Aunt Gladys’s past sounds both terrifying and thrilling. And if Cregger’s instincts are right, this new chapter could be every bit as disturbing as the original.