Fantastic Four Star Joins New Movie From Barbarian Director

Julia Garner is joining Josh Brolin in Weapons.

It was revealed at the beginning of last year that Barbarian director Zach Cregger would be returning to the world of horror in the upcoming New Line Cinema film, Weapons. The movie is set to star Josh Brolin, who is best known for playing Thanos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Interestingly, the actor’s role was originally given to Pedro Pascal, and it was rumored that The Mandalorian and The Last of Us star had to drop out due to his own commitment to Marvel. Pascal is set to play Reed Richards in Fantastic Four. What’s even more interesting is that another Fantastic Four actor just joined the cast of Weapons. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Julia Garner has been cast in the horror film. 

While THR doesn’t mention Pascal’s exit from Weapons, it’s possible that Garner’s schedule is more open since her role isn’t as massive as Pascal’s. After all, she is playing Shalla-Bal, not one of the titular four. The report doesn’t offer up much info about Garner’s role in Weapons but does confirm the film will start shooting next month in Atlanta. 

Cregger penned the script for Weapons, which has been described as an “interrelated, multistory horror epic that tonally is in the vein of Magnolia, the 1999 actor-crammed showcase from filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson.” Cregger is also producing the project alongside Roy Lee and Miri Yoon of Vertigo, and J.D. Lifshitz and Raphael Margules of BoulderLight Pictures. 

Cregger scored an eight-figure sum from New Line to write and direct the upcoming film, a number that is more than twice Barbarian‘s $4.5-million budget.

Will Barbarian Get a Sequel?

According to Barbarian star, Georgina Campbell, Cregger has no interest in expanding the world. 

“Zach doesn’t want to do a sequel. He’s very much, it’s stand-alone, it was really good, and I think sometimes with certain things, that’s the best way to go,” Campbell told ComicBook.com‘s Chris Killian. “He is the creator, the writer, director, so he knows. That’s his thing, he doesn’t want to expand upon it, so just leave it alone.”

Cregger also ruled out the likelihood of a prequel, given the unsettling subject matter the concept would be forced to explore.

“I don’t think I’m necessarily interested in a prequel right now. I think it would have to tell the story of Frank [Richard Brake], and I’m personally not interested in making a movie about a man who abducts women,” Cregger revealed to The Hollywood Reporter. “I’m more than happy to have that be the setting for another story like Barbarian is, but I don’t want to watch that guy for an hour and a half. I could be thinking about it all wrong. Maybe I’ll change my tune, but at the moment, no. There’s a sequel I joke about that I would love to watch, which would be The Mother surviving her gunshot and having to integrate into society. She could attend community college and get her learner’s permit and get a Tinder profile. That would be fun. I’d watch that movie. I don’t know if I’d make it, but I’d love to see it.”  

Stay tuned for more updates about Weapons.