Warner Bros. New Line Division Makes Deal with 'Barbarian' Filmmaker Zach Cregger to Release His Next Horror Film

by Darian Scalamoni

    Horror reigned supreme for surprise hits as per usual in the movie market with some standouts including Smile, The Black Phone and Nope grossing more than $150 million worldwide. However, a little-known film Barbarian from a new director made $65 million at the box-office against a budget of only $4 million marking it as a massive success. That director was a man named Zach Cregger and he is lining up his next film following the success of Barbarian.

    The horror film that is filled with disturbing imagery, some laughs and shocking twists made a perfect recipe for Cregger, whose fame is most known for being one of the lead stars and creators of the comedy troupe, The Whitest Kids U' Know, however, he's now joined a line of comedians turned horror directors with Barbarian. According to a report from The Hollywood Reporter, Cregger signed a deal with New Line who won a bidding war to attain his services for his follow-up feature titled, Weapons. The publication details that some streaming services were making offers on Weapons even prior to a script being finished by Cregger, but alas New Line won out with a whopping eight-figure deal that also included a guaranteed greenlight, backend profit and a certified theatrical release prior to streaming. A deal such as this is almost unheard of for a filmmaker coming off one successful film, however, Barbarian was such a cult hit, that it garnered this sort of deal for New Line to bring Cregger's latest into the fold.

    The report also details that if Weapons becomes a box-office smash similar to Barbarian than the studio would look to bring in Cregger as their newest horror voice similar to the deal Universal has currently with Jordan Peele for his carousel of horrifying cinematic ideas. Cregger had co-written and co-directed a low-budget comedy film, Miss March that wasn't seen by many prior to coming up with the concept for Barbarian. The film stars Georgina Campbell, Bill Skarsgard and Justin Long in a story about a woman who gets double booked in an AirBnB in a very trouble-ridden Detroit. Though we can't reveal more of the details without spoiling some of the twists, let's just say that you should be more aware next time you go into the basement.

    Barbarian was one of the most inventive, original and beloved movies of 2022 getting rave reviews upon its theatrical release last September. Details are being kept under wraps for Weapons, but insiders describe the script as an interconnected horror epic that plays akin to that of Paul Thomas Anderson's 1999 film, Magnolia spanning multiple characters and stories over the length of the film. Many great actors are lining up to work with Cregger so we at Cinema Wave cannot wait to see who joins the cast of Weapons.

    What do you guys think of the news of Zach Cregger's follow-up to Barbarian? Did you see the 2022 cult horror film? Are you excited to see Weapons? Let us know in the comment section below.