The horror comedy “Weapons” is full of twists and turns, and early marketing for the film carefully hid some of its biggest reveals.
One of those surprises was so closely guarded that a key cast member was kept out of the press tour, declining to give a single interview until now.
(Stop reading here if you haven’t seen “Weapons,” since spoilers will follow)
In this film, from the writer-director Zach Cregger, the residents of a small Pennsylvania town are rattled when 17 children from the same third-grade class vanish in the middle of the night. One grieving father (Josh Brolin) suspects their teacher, Justine Gandy (Julia Garner), is somehow involved. Gandy herself seeks answers from Alex (Cary Christopher), the sole student from her class who didn’t go missing.
But the real villain is Gladys (Amy Madigan), who has come to town claiming to be Alex’s aunt. Using witchcraft, this withered old woman drained the life force of his parents, then lured Alex’s classmates to his house to siphon energy from them, too.
Though Cregger takes his time to fully reveal the character, Gladys still makes quite an impression. For starters, there’s her eccentric look: Whenever she ventures into town to conceal her crimes, Gladys smears on lipstick and dons a garish red wig and green-tinged eyeglasses. But Madigan’s performance is the real standout, as the 74-year-old actress shifts effortlessly from over-the-top absurdity to sudden, chilling menace.
Best known for roles in “Field of Dreams” and “Uncle Buck,” Madigan can hardly believe how quickly her character has become a horror-movie sensation. “It’s been overwhelming,” she said on a Thursday video call from the Los Angeles home she shares with her husband, the actor Ed Harris. “A couple of people I’ve worked with or known said, ‘I didn’t know that was you till the end of the film!’”
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The post The Secret Weapon of ‘Weapons’: Amy Madigan appeared first on New York Times.
