{"id":1989283,"date":"2025-08-31T05:27:28","date_gmt":"2025-08-31T05:27:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=1989283"},"modified":"2025-08-31T05:27:28","modified_gmt":"2025-08-31T05:27:28","slug":"weapons-is-nightmare-fuel-but-i-was-also-disappointed-by-the-horror-villain-for-one-big-reason","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/weapons-is-nightmare-fuel-but-i-was-also-disappointed-by-the-horror-villain-for-one-big-reason\/","title":{"rendered":"Weapons Is Nightmare Fuel, But I Was Also Disappointed By The Horror Villain For One Big Reason"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div data-article-body=\"true\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><i>When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.<\/i><\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">I\u2019m always looking out for what <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/entertainment\/upcoming-horror-movies-scary-movies-220820797.html\" data-ylk=\"slk:upcoming horror movies;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;outcm:mb_qualified_link;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;\" class=\"link  yahoo-link\">upcoming horror movies<\/a> are on the way because the genre has brought me some of my most unforgettable memories watching films in recent years. So, when I saw our five-star <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/entertainment\/articles\/weapons-review-2025-remarkable-horror-190000927.html\" data-ylk=\"slk:Weapons review;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;outcm:mb_qualified_link;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;\" class=\"link  yahoo-link\"><em>Weapons<\/em> review<\/a>, and <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/entertainment\/articles\/weapons-officially-one-greatest-box-181442344.html\" data-ylk=\"slk:its massive box office achievements;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;outcm:mb_qualified_link;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;\" class=\"link  yahoo-link\">its massive box office achievements<\/a>, I knew I had to give it a shot. Wow&#8230;I didn\u2019t know what I was in for. Zach Cregger\u2019s followup to <em>Barbarian<\/em> is truly terrifying to me, and that\u2019s not something that I can quickly say about most \u201cscary\u201d movies out there. I do have a gripe with its ending reveal, though.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">While I absolutely appreciate <em>Weapons<\/em> for the very bold, scary and expertly crafted movie that it is on one hand, I do have to say that for me personally, it went a couple of bridges too far for my taste on the other. For one, having the main victims of the movie being elementary school children really got under my skin, because the importance of childhood and innocence is a very sacred thing to me that this movie totally tore at the seams. The second reason why <em>Weapons<\/em> was a lot for me is the villain behind their disappearances and all the brutal violence of the movie, which I want to talk about more in depth. <strong>MAJOR SPOILERS are ahead! <\/strong><\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Aunt Gladys talking to the principal in Weapons\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/9rMEvK1lajYm_n18xouCmQ--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/cinemablend_388\/f9eaf15d6edbc73c129dc91f666f0152\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Credit: Warner Bros.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 class=\"mb-4 text-xl font-bold md:text-2xl\">I Was Disappointed By Gladys<\/h2>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Gladys absolutely had all the proverbial hairs on my body standing up in fear, from the first appearance in a nightmare early in the film, and things just spiral from there. It\u2019s rather amazing that Cregger was able to do this with a red-wigged old lady with funky clothing and weird makeup. But, I also left the film feeling put off by the narrative decision to make the mystery of the film lead up to a witch who basically kidnaps her nephew and feeds off the souls of children in order to stay as youthful and alive as possible. When you think about it, it\u2019s kind of an age old horror story, when the rest of <em>Weapons<\/em> felt fresh and modern to me.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">I\u2019m not saying Gladys is a bad villain \u2013 as I&#8217;ve communicated, I found the whole thing to be quite effectively chilling, but in the larger context of all the horror movies I\u2019ve seen in the past few years, Gladys feels like the continuation of a trend in the genre that\u2019s starting to become rather stale for me.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Alex looking horrified as he leans against a door in Weapons\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/HATCDVuRbz3HQ5ItRESDSw--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/cinemablend_388\/c1067caee9ee1c6183794c917901c13a\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 class=\"mb-4 text-xl font-bold md:text-2xl\">What&#8217;s Up With So Many Creepy Old Lady Villains In Horror Movies Lately?<\/h2>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">So, Gladys is the fifth \u201ccreepy old lady\u201d villain I\u2019ve seen in a major horror release in the last three years. Let\u2019s go through the examples. In Ti West\u2019s 2022 movie, <em>X<\/em>, a group of young people trying to make a porno at a rural farm and are hunted down by an elderly couple, Howard and Pearl \u2013 with Pearl\u2019s creepy demeanor expertly played by Mia Goth, being the scary highlight of the whole thing. The <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cinemablend.com\/movies\/x-ending-explained\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:X ending;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \"><em>X <\/em>ending<\/a> disturbed audiences (including myself) because Pearl actually wanted in on the sexual activities taking place on their property.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">That very same year, Zach Cregger\u2019s debut horror movie, <em>Barbarian<\/em>, came out. The twist of <em>that <\/em>movie is that a character known as The Mother, who comes from a line of women a deranged man named Frank raped and had kids with to a gross, incestuous level. The Mother took the form of an elderly naked woman with her hair falling out and saggy breasts.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Then, we jump to two other horror movies from last year. There\u2019s the Eggers\u2019 <em>The Front Room<\/em>, which had <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/entertainment\/kathryn-hunter-front-room-role-230600879.html\" data-ylk=\"slk:Kathryn Hunter playing a terrifying stepmother-in-law;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;outcm:mb_qualified_link;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;\" class=\"link  yahoo-link\">Kathryn Hunter playing a terrifying stepmother-in-law<\/a> of Brandy\u2019s character, who haunts the poor pregnant woman with extreme caregiving tasks, along with a sprinkle of racial and religious microaggressions that also had me turning in my seat. And finally, there\u2019s <em>The Substance<\/em>, which has an aging star Elisabeth Sparkles (Demi Moore) resorting to a mysterious medication that allows her to be young for two weeks at a time slowly turning herself into a grotesque old lady monster. Anyone else sensing a trend here?<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Kathryn Hunter laughing while injured in The Front Room\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/SP00wkupSsaLq4.ZMWOmHQ--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/cinemablend_388\/bb5bcf7393c166827a2284d1cb3852f7\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Credit: A24<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 class=\"mb-4 text-xl font-bold md:text-2xl\">Villains Like Gladys Are Given No Redeeming Qualities, And Are Depicted As Absolute Evils<\/h2>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Along with creepy old ladies being a common subject matter for villain characters in recent horror movies, I noticed each of them have a similar thing in common. There is very little empathy or humanity shown for these characters, and who they are as people. Each of them really scared me (aside from maybe <em>The Substance<\/em>) because they are seen as these completely evil anomalies that cannot be easily stopped \u2013 especially with any kind of reason.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">To get into Gladys storyline further, it\u2019s made pretty clear that she doesn\u2019t care about anyone except for herself. Heck, she allows a 10-year-old to watch his parents self harm themselves and be completely unresponsive to him and makes him serve soup to them daily (along with his whole class of children) in order to stay alive. If that isn\u2019t pure evil, I don\u2019t know what is.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Pearl sits in bed with Maxine in X.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/5SGaHijh2fSj_Gfnajl3Tg--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/cinemablend_388\/61663d47c73fb4bc8c80dd315845ca73\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Credit: a24<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 class=\"mb-4 text-xl font-bold md:text-2xl\">The Use Of Aging Women&#8217;s Bodies To Disgust Audiences On So Many Occasions Is Becoming A Bothersome Trend<\/h2>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Upon reflection, the trend is starting to bother me because it\u2019s portraying elderly women as these absolute evils with grotesque bodies, and hearts of coal, and I don\u2019t really know what the root of that is. Sure, in <em>The Substance<\/em> it\u2019s <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/entertainment\/substance-might-not-everyone-want-150400053.html\" data-ylk=\"slk:talking about how the pressures of societal standards;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;outcm:mb_qualified_link;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;\" class=\"link  yahoo-link\">talking about how the pressures of societal standards<\/a> creates a literal monster, and perhaps <em>X<\/em> is about sexual repression of women (that is before <em>Pearl<\/em> fleshes out a rather psychotic origin story for the character), and <em>Barbarian<\/em> imagines the evil that can brew from a man taking advantage of women across generations, but what is <em>Weapons<\/em> trying to tell me? What bigger message is behind the surface to account for the terror Gladys wreaks on a classroom of children and their parents?<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">I can only deduce that the aging of women is coming in fashion as a nightmarish image that is sure to get horror fans raving, and I have complicated feelings about that. As someone who hopes to be an elderly woman someday, I\u2019m not necessarily offended by this trend, but I am troubled about how much they\u2019ve amounted to some of the scariest movies I\u2019ve seen in recent years. With so many examples in recent years, I\u2019m hoping horror filmmakers can get the memo and look elsewhere when crafting their next big villain twists, otherwise it&#8217;s moving into trope territory.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures I\u2019m always looking out for what upcoming horror movies are on the way because the genre has brought me some of my most unforgettable memories watching films in recent years. So, when I saw [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1989284,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[358979,312982,306876,327381,339106],"class_list":["post-1989283","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-elementary-school-children","tag-horror-movies","tag-warner-bros","tag-warner-bros-pictures","tag-zach-cregger"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Weapons-Is-Nightmare-Fuel-But-I-Was-Also-Disappointed-By.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1989283","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1989283"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1989283\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1989284"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1989283"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1989283"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1989283"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}