New Line Cinema is getting the marketing campaign fully set for Zach Cregger’s latest film, Weapons, and it’s … effective to say the least. Going full The Blair Witch Project, the production company has created a fake (or is it?!) website to get word out about the bizarre string of missing children cases that will stand at the forefront of the film. Dubbed the “Maybrook News,” the faux site is giving some serious ‘90s vibes or like if your boomer parents or relatives tried to make a website (we mean this in the best way possible).
Quite literally spelling out the plot of the movie, the first paragraph of the story reads:
“A chilling mystery has gripped the small town of Maybrook after 17 children voluntarily left their homes Wednesday morning. Authorities are baffled by the inexplicable disappearance, which has shaken the community to its core.”
The piece goes on to explain that each of the kiddos took off at the same time — 2:17 am — and is accompanied by images and clips from security cameras outside some of the homes. The images in question feature the silhouettes of the kids, one of which appears to be skipping as they cross the street, never to be seen again. Adding another level of intrigue, as viewers scroll down the website, they’ll spot a familiar link titled “Underground Prison Discovered in Rental Home”. Upon clicking on it, readers are transported to a different article that acts as a summary for Cregger’s previous smash-hit horror flick, Barbarian, which essentially solidifies the theory that both movies take place in the same twisted and terrifying universe.
What We Know So Far About ‘Weapons’
Two weeks ago, I was lucky enough to be part of the audience at CinemaCon, where Cregger and New Line debuted their first look at Weapons. The team teased that it was essentially a rough draft of the trailer, but it showcased Julia Garner as a school teacher whose entire classroom goes missing one night. The sneak peek was eerie and unsettling, with the town attempting to better understand what exactly happened to the kids and get to the bottom of the mystery. Along with Garner, audiences got a speedy look at other members of the star-studded ensemble, which includes Josh Brolin, Benedict Wong, Austin Abrams, Alden Ehrenreich, Amy Madigan, June Diane Raphael, and more.
With the promo game officially off to an energizingly creative start, we can’t wait to see how the rest of the build-up to Weapons‘ August 8 release date pans out. Hit this link to check out the faux website.
via Collider