Zach Cregger, the director behind the 2022 horror hit Barbarian, is back with a new movie — and it’s already making waves. His latest film, Weapons, has debuted to glowing reviews and a huge audience response, setting it up for a strong box office run.
Horror movies have had mixed success lately, but big-screen “elevated horror” has been doing well — and Weapons fits right in. The film is expected to earn around $38 million in its opening weekend in the U.S., which is almost the same as its reported $38 million budget.
For comparison, Barbarian earned $40 million in total during its entire domestic run — and it cost just $4 million to make. If Weapons keeps this momentum, it might pass Barbarian’s total earnings in just one weekend.
Inspired by Paul Thomas Anderson’s Magnolia, Weapons currently has an impressive 96% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, with reviews praising it as a “terrifying mystery” and “a masterclass in horror filmmaking.” Audiences are loving it too, giving it an 89% score on Rotten Tomatoes and an A- grade on CinemaScore — the same rating as A Quiet Place: Part II and Five Nights at Freddy’s.
The film stars Julia Garner as a teacher whose students mysteriously vanish one night. She’s joined by a strong cast, including Josh Brolin, Alden Ehrenreich, Benedict Wong, and Austin Abrams.
Weapons is now playing in theatres, and with its early buzz, it could become one of the biggest horror hits of the year.