It’s the spooky season once again, which means that horror movies aren’t just another genre of film, but a must-watch. There have been plenty of new additions to the catalog of seasonal greats in 2025, and it just so happens that HBO Max just added one of the year’s best to stream, perfectly timed for Halloween: “Weapons,” a film we called a “gruesome and unsettling crowdpleaser” in our review.
Helmed by “Barbarian” director Zach Cregger, “Weapons” features an ensemble cast led by Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, and Alden Ehrenreich, and is another in a long line of horror films centered around terrifying children. In this case, a group of 17 elementary school students all abandon their homes in the middle of the night without explanation — and go mysteriously missing. Their disappearance also coincides with the arrival of Gladys (Amy Madigan), an aunt of the only student left behind, who may not be the innocent old woman she appears to be.
Impressing both audiences and critics, “Weapons” was one of the hottest films of the year, and with its arrival on HBO Max, it’s the perfect watch for the fall season. But be warned — it’s not for the faint of heart. And you just might want to check out our convenient “Weapons” explainer before you press play.
Read more: The Most Shocking Movie Endings
Director Zach Creggers says horror movies have big advantages
Aunt Gladys in the principal’s kitchen in “Weapons” (2025) – Warner Bros. Pictures
Director Zach Creggers is behind two recent first-rate horror movies, 2022’s “Barbarian” and this year’s “Weapons.” While he’s worked in other realms, it seems like horror is now his home, and he owes it to the fact that the genre has a huge advantage over others. “The budgets are not extravagant, and so you’re able to be a little risky,” Creggers said in an interview with Collider. With lower budgets, massive box office returns aren’t needed for a movie to become a hit, and filmmakers can get away with taking bigger swings.
“I think [horror]’s one of the few theatrical avenues right now where you can be surprised, and I think that’s sort of a shame,” Creggers admitted, despite finding his own success in the genre. As he describes it, Hollywood has moved away from mid-budget movies, with only low-budget horror and mammoth-budget action spectacles the only projects that studios will seemingly greenlight: “There’s just not that much room for anything else.”
The good news for Creggers is that horror isn’t just a genre that can succeed — it’s also one that he loves to play in. “My creative tuning fork tends to just really resonate with horror,” he added. “This is my natural sweet spot, so I’m lucky in that way. But god forbid my natural sweet spot was a romantic comedy, or a zany comedy, I think I’d be in a bit more trouble.”
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Read the original article on Looper.
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