A new horror movie from Barbarian director Zach Cregger is in the works and it’s already found a new home, with New Line Cinema landing the rights to the upcoming project.
The news comes via The Hollywood Reporter, who confirms that the studio won the rights to Weapons after a brief but intense bidding war. According to the outlet, producers were calling Cregger’s representatives, begging to be involved.
Demand for the director’s next feature comes as no surprise as his previous work on Barbarian proved to be one of 2022’s most unexpected and successful horror entries. Reported figures suggest the film was sold for an impressive eight-figure sum, which adds even further credence to Cregger’s value as a filmmaker – especially since Barbarian marks his only entry as a director.
Plot details remain under wraps, but the film is described as an interrelated, multistory horror epic that tonally is in the vein of Magnolia, the 1999 actor-crammed showcase from filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson.
As well as writing and directing Weapons, Cregger will also serve as producer for the film alongside Roy Lee of Vertigo Entertainment and J.D. Lifshitz/Raphael Margules of Boulderlight Productions, all of whom produced Barbarian. Vertigo’s Miri Yoon will also produce.
“Zach proved with Barbarian that he can create a visceral theatrical experience for audiences and that he commands every tool in the filmmaker toolbelt,” said New Line’s president and CCO, Richard Brener, in a statement. “We couldn’t be happier that he, Roy [Lee] and Miri [Yoon], and J.D. [Lifshitz]and Rafi [Margules] chose New Line to be the home of his next film, and hope it is the first of many to come.”
Hollywood Reporter sources also suggest that if things turn out well with this project, a goal would be to ultimately have Cregger become a significant horror voice and supplier for the Warners/New Line movie factory.
Cregger’s Barbarian premiered at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2022 and then opened in September to rave reviews from both fans and critics. The film opened at the top of the domestic box office, earning an impressive $10.5 million on its opening weekend, and would eventually rake in a total of $45 million worldwide from a production budget of only $4.5 million.
Weapons will be distributed theatrically by Warner Bros. Pictures.