Weapons' Aunt Gladys prequel moves ahead with major update following Amy Madigan’s Oscar win

After becoming one of cinema's biggest talking points in 2025, horror movie Weapons will be getting a prequel film charting the origins of stand-out character Aunt Gladys.

The genre-bender, which tells the story of a strange mystery when a group of schoolchildren all go missing in the dead of night, became a hit upon release, raking in just shy of $270million at the worldwide box office.

Aunt Gladys, played by Amy Madigan, proved an instant fan favourite, thanks to her eccentric make-up and stand-out colourful wigs.

A sinister figure from the very beginning, Gladys pulls the strings from behind the scenes, but, even still, there's no predicting just how influential she would be on the film's dramatic, and surprisingly hilarious, finale.

During awards season this year, Madigan took home an Oscar for her portrayal of the already iconic horror villain – and now fans are set to find out more about the character.

According to Deadline, the new movie, tentatively titled Gladys, will be written by Zach Cregger and Zach Shields.

Cregger wrote and directed the first Weapons film following the success of his 2022 horror movie, Barbarian. He will be joined on the new project by Shields, whose credits include Krampus Godzilla: King of the Monsters. Madigan is set to reprise her role in the upcoming film.

At this year’s Academy Awards, Madigan took home her first Oscar, beating out Teyana Taylor for One Battle After Another, Wunmi Mosaku for Sinners, and Elle Fanning and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, both for Sentimental Value.

When she took to the stage, she let out a Gladys-like cackle before declaring: "This is great!"

She went on to thank Cregger, who "just wrote a dream part that made her want to grab it by the throat", as well as several other members of the cast and production team.

"As you can tell, I’m a little flummoxed," she added, noting her "legs were shaking" before paying tribute to her fellow nominees and her family.

She ended her speech with a dedication to her husband, fellow actor (and four-time Oscar nominee) Ed Harris, saying "none of this would matter without you by my side".

Weapons is available to rent or buy.

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