Top 10 Insane Behind the Scenes Facts About Weapons

#10: Magnolia Parallels

Weapons is told from multiple perspectives, echoing two of Zach Creggers creative inspirations. One was Jennifer Egans Pulitzer Prize-winning episodic novel, A Visit from the Goon Squad. The other was Paul Thomas Andersons Magnolia, which is also an ensemble piece with interconnecting stories about people who are emotionally lost. While Magnolia isnt a horror film, it is an epic, which Cregger aimed to produce. Cregger admired how Magnolia was totally proud to be an epic movie and to be a little bit messy. He views Weapons as an ancestor to Magnolia, which gave him license to think differently while writing it. Alden Ehrenreichs character is a direct homage to John C. Reilly, who similarly played a bubbling cop with a mustache in Magnolia.

#9: Fungi Forshadowing

Before Aunt Gladys pays a visit, Marcus and his husband sit down to a scrumptious hot dog supper thatll sadly go uneaten. The two are also watching a documentary exploring Cordyceps fungus, which you mightve learned about through The Last of Us. Ophiocordyceps unilateralis, also known as zombie-ant fungus, causes the insect to lose control of their muscles. Although it manipulates their movements, the fungus doesnt control their brain per se, suggesting that the ants are still aware of their surroundings. This mirrors what happens to Marcus, as hes suddenly turned into a puppet parasite. Its unclear if Marcus is at all conscious while under this spell. If he is, his actions are even more devastating, with his final destination providing a release.

#8: Funny Moments Were Cut

Despite the grim subject matter, the films wild sense of humor caught numerous viewers off guard. Of course, its less surprising knowing that Zach Cregger previously made Barbarian and was a co-founder of The Whitest Kids U' Know. While Cregger sought to blend genres, he understood that the comedy shouldnt overshadow the horror, especially if certain comedic moments didnt land the way he expected. Cregger said, Theres a lot of jokes that didnt make it into the movie that I thought were going to be so funny. And then we did a test screening, and nobody laughed, and Im like, OK, its gotta go. According to Cregger, there arent many deleted scenes. Just a few moments that slowed the pacing down and werent necessary.

#7: The Significance of 2:17

When the clock struck 2:17 AM, seventeen children got out of bed, left their homes, and disappeared. Although Cregger claims 2:17 is a random number, theres an eerie parallel to the New Testament. One of the missing children is named Matthew. In the Gospel of Matthew, the seventeenth verse in the second chapter discusses the Massacre of the Innocents. While not exactly the same, a massacre involving innocents does occur. In addition to Matthew 2:17, the number could be a reference to The Shining, which Cregger cited as one of his inspirations. Although changed to Room 237 for Stanley Kubricks film adaptation, true Shining fans know the original number in Stephen Kings novel was 217. This cant be a coincidence, right?

#6: Amy Madigan Was Cast on the Spot

Amy Madigan mightve seemed like an unusual choice to play Aunt Gladys, but this was among the easiest roles to cast. Cregger met Madigan for the first time over lunch. On his way to the meeting, Cregger told himself not to offer her the role up front. Cregger thankfully went against his initial judgment, telling her between breadsticks and the main course, This part is yours. You can have it! Although much about Gladys remains a mystery, Cregger presented Madigan with two backstories for the character. In one, Gladys is an ill woman who turns to dark magic for self-preservation. In the other, shes a creature disguising herself as human. Cregger asked Madigan to choose between these origin stories. She didnt tell him which, however.

#5: Zach Cregger Didnt Start with an Ending

Weapons draws us in with a haunting question, keeping us guessing every step of the way. Just as we dont know where the story is going, neither did Cregger. When Cregger began writing, he knew the story would revolve around a classroom of children who ran away in the middle of the night. He had no idea where the kids went, however. Cregger admits that hes written his fair share of scripts that started with a gripping hook, but he couldnt figure out how to stick the landing. With Weapons, the answer came to him about halfway through writing. Barbarian went through a similar evolution. While Cregger had the setup figured out, it wasnt until later in the creative process that the second-act twist materialized.

#4: Jordan Peele Supposedly Fired People Over It

After the success of Barbarian, studios were eager to pick up Creggers next project. New Line Cinema and parent company Warner Bros. emerged victorious from the bidding war. Although Netflix offered more money upfront, New Line guaranteed a theatrical release. Plus, New Line still made a lucrative offer, entailing a $38 million budget with $10 million going to Cregger. Weapons also caught the eye of Jordan Peele, whose Monkeypaw Productions currently has an exclusivity agreement with Universal, which reportedly offered $7 million less than what New Line was willing to pay. It wasnt long after this that Peele cut ties with his managers, Peter Principato and Joel Zadak. Principato also manages Cregger, feeding into the rumor that Peele was pissed about losing to New Line.

#3: Tragic Inspirations

Weapons explores some disturbing territory, especially considering several real-world inspirations. The distinct way the children run from their houses mimics Phan Thi Kim Phuc, aka the napalm girl from the historic photo taken during the Vietnam War. Other ideas stemmed from Creggers experiences. Cregger, whose father died from cirrhosis, knows what its like to live with a parent who has a substance use disorder. This made the final act autobiographical, as a foreign entity infects Alexs home, suddenly making him the caregiver to his parents. The films genesis also derived from the loss of Creggers friend Trevor Moore, a fellow Whitest Kids U' Know alumnus. While Cregger doesnt view Weapons as a meditation on grief, writing the script was his way of coping.

#2: Gun in the Sky Meaning (or Lack Thereof)

Weapons leaves several questions up in the air, one quite literally. During a surreal sequence, Josh Brolins Archer envisions a giant gun floating above a house. To Cregger, this is one of the most important images in the film. As such, youd think Cregger would have a long-winded explanation about the assault weapons purpose. Speaking with Variety, though, Cregger revealed that part of what he loves about this scene is that he doesnt understand it himself. While Cregger has a few ideas of what the gun might represent, he doesnt have the right answer. Cregger seems content letting viewers draw their conclusions. Some might argue the film is a metaphor for gun violence in suburbia, although as we see, firearms arent the only deadly weapons.

#1: It Almost Had a Completely Different Cast

As well-assembled as the cast here is, Cregger originally had several other actors lined up. The initial cast included Pedro Pascal as Archer, Renate Reinsve as Justine, Tom Burke as Paul, and Brian Tyree Henry as Marcus. Then the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes hit, shaking up some schedules. By the time the strikes were resolved, Cregger managed to retain a few actors like Austin Abrams and June Diane Raphael. The principal players had to be recast, though, most notably Pascal, who landed the lead in The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Ironically, that film also starred Julia Garner, who still found time to substitute Reinsve as Justine. Meanwhile, Josh Brolin took over for Pascal, Alden Ehrenreich replaced Burke, and Benedict Wong filled in for Henry.

Do you have any interesting facts about Weapons? Let us know in the comments.