Weapons director had "a whole different cast" for the horror movie before the Hollywood strikes but Pedro Pascal's scheduling conflicts "threw them into turmoil": "I had to recast the entire movie"

Weapons director Zach Cregger has revealed that he originally had a completely different cast in mind for the film, including man of the hour Pedro Pascal.

"I had a whole different cast for this movie," Cregger told Entertainment Weekly. "And then we had the strike, and then Pedro Pascal's schedule threw us into turmoil. I had to recast the entire movie."

SAG-AFTRA, the Hollywood actors' union, went on strike from July to November 2023, halting production across the industry for nearly four months.

"This is what happens, right?" the director continued. "The strikes delayed us, and then when you delay, people's schedules get conflicts, and then you're back at square one. I bear no ill will towards anybody. We just kept getting delayed and delayed. It's like a domino effect. So I had to start over again."

Along with Pascal, Cregger went on to confirm that the horror movie's original cast also included Brian Tyree Henry and Renate Reinsve. However, the stars of the movie ultimately ended up being Josh Brolin, Alden Ehrenreich, and Julia Garner.

Cregger's follow-up to 2022's surprise hit Barbarian follows the aftermath of a peculiar incident that shakes a community to its core, when all but one child in an elementary school class runs off in the middle of the night for reasons unknown. The movie is a hit with critics and currently has a perfect score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, with our own Weapons review praising "the movie’s stellar ensemble cast and compelling mystery" that "keep you hooked to the bloody end."

Weapons hits theaters on August 8 in the US and August 7 in the UK. In the meantime, check out our guide to the other best upcoming horror movies on the way in 2025.