Director Zach Cregger shared a new update on the Weapons spin-off centered on its breakout character, Aunt Gladys. Amy Madigan, who played the witchy character, earned an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her performance.
Cregger discussed the Weapons prequel in an interview with Men’s Health while promoting his new horror film, Resident Evil. When asked about Gladys’s status, Cregger confirmed that the script’s first draft is finished. “The script is in process, and the first draft is written. It’s awesome. We’re still working on it though,” Cregger said.
The director also explained why a standalone movie about Gladys can work. “When I wrote Weapons, I had a ‘Gladys’ chapter that I went into her whole backstory, and I ended up taking it out of Weapons because I thought it was better to just not know about her,” the 45-year-old said.
Cregger also said he wants Amy to return, ruling out any plans to cast a younger version of Gladys. “It would be Amy. I’m not going to do a Young Gladys.”
What the Aunt Gladys prequel will explore beyond the horror
Rather than focusing solely on Gladys as a central horror figure, the prequel will explore her backstory, including who she was and what made her who she became. Cregger said the story asks, “Who was Gladys before she became that, and how did she become that?”
In the same interview, he described the project as a character study with horror elements still present. He initially set aside the Gladys story when writing Weapons, because he wanted to tell it separately. The director called the approach right for Weapons and mentioned it doesn’t mean “there’s not a cool story about Gladys that can be a separate thing,” adding that he’s excited about where it could go.
The movie is currently in development and is scheduled to release in theaters on September 8, 2028.