"I probably shouldn't even say that": Weapons director teases surprise cast members in his new horror movie, which has "more twists and turns than Barbarian"

Director Zach Cregger made a name for himself in 2022 when his shocking horror movie Barbarian hit screens. But it looks like the filmmaker may one-up himself this year, as he says his upcoming flick Weapons has even more surprises than Barbarian, with more cast members yet to be announced.

"I've got to be so careful about spoilers, but here's what I will say. This movie has more twists and turns than Barbarian, but what it doesn't do, very intentionally, is I never abandon the audience," Cregger says in the new issue of SFX magazine, which features Alien: Earth on the cover and hits newsstands on Wednesday, July 16.

From its creepy marketing and chilling posters to the first cryptic trailer, Cregger and Warner Bros. are holding their cards pretty close to their chests when it comes to Weapons. It looks like this is for a good reason as the director tells SFX that the stellar cast, including Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, and Alden Ehrenreich, are not the only stars of the movie. Oh no, there are more characters yet to come.

"There's a couple of names that aren't in the cast announcement, and there's a couple of [actors] that I think people have not realised what a big deal their characters will be," says Cregger. "That's great, and I probably shouldn't even say that, but there are some actors that... it's amazing what they do... There are seven main characters in this movie and the trailer, we're leaning into two of those. But there are truly seven main characters."

These elusive characters may have something to do with the fact that Cregger seems to be hiding the real premise of the movie. According to the movie’s synopsis, Weapons takes place in a town where "all but one child from the same class mysteriously vanish on the same night at exactly the same time," leaving the community "questioning who or what is behind their disappearance."

Cregger suggests that there is a lot more to Weapons than meets the eye. "The engine of the children leaving is the engine of the whole movie, but the mystery is not the engine of the whole movie," he clarifies, albeit somewhat cryptically. We know that Barbarian’s trailers didn’t show the Mother or mention anything about the climactic second act. It looks like that is the case for Weapons, too.

The film also stars Austin Abrams, Cary Christopher, Benedict Wong, and Amy Madigan.

Not a subscriber to SFX? Then head on over here to get the latest issues sent directly to your home/device!

Weapons releases on August 8. Read more in the latest issue of SFX magazine, which will be available from Wednesday, July 16. Here's the Alien: Earth cover you need to be looking out for on newsstands below...