Zach Cregger explains why theWeaponscredits thank David Fincher. The movie is the second horror feature film from the director, who made his impressive debut withBarbarianback in 2022. This time, he tackles a mysterious, deeply psychological story surrounding a group of 17 school children who disappear when they all leave their houses one day at 2:17 a.m.
Weaponshas been a huge hit in theatersthus far. Not only has it gotten rave reviews from critics, but it has already managed an impressive box office for a horror movie that far exceeds that ofBarbarian. At the time of writing,Weaponshas made over $81 million worldwide, a total that is growing.
Speaking in an interview withVariety,Cregger explained why Fincher was thanked in the movie’s credits.Cregger said that Fincher was extremely helpful to him throughout the process, giving the newer director “really constructive thoughts” and making himself “very available during the post process.”
Cregger specified thatFincher was especially helpful in getting him to arrive at the “best” take ofWeapons.Realizing these high sights involved post-production techniques, including ADR, and also honing his understanding of “what lenses to use.” Check out the full quote from Cregger below:
Variety: David Fincher is thanked in the end credits. How did he help you with the film?
Cregger: He’s just a very helpful guy. He was available to me during prep, and then he was very available during the post process. He watched the movie and had a lot of really constructive thoughts and gave me a ton of ideas. He helped me learn more about the editing process and how to think about it in a new way that wasn’t available to me when I was making Barbarian. So he just opened my mind up a lot.
Variety: In what ways specifically?
Cregger: There are things I thought I had to just settle for. I thought, “Well, that’s the take I have. That’s the best take. And it’s not perfect, but by God, nothing is.” Dave’s attitude is, “It can always be better, and there are a lot of tools that you have at your disposal that you might not be thinking about.” So, from reframing to stabilization to ADR to all sorts of things, it was really cool. Honestly, I learned a lot about how to prep, what lenses to use. I shot this mostly anamorphic, and I didn’t quite respect how limiting anamorphic is in the post process. So stuff like that, technical stuff.
What This Means For Weapons
Fincher himself is one of the most influential directorsof the last few decades.Fincher’s moviesare known for their bold storytelling, evidenced by works likeSe7en,Gone Girl, andZodiac. This background makes him an especially interesting creative for a younger director to take inspiration from, as he is well-versed in radical structural techniques.
Fincher and Cregger also share a similar affinity for mystery. WhileWeaponscertainly has its moments of gore, jump scares, and other typical horror genre staples, it is fundamentally a mystery movie. The characters are guided by the centralizing question of “what happened to these kids,” and take audiences with them on a search for answers.
Looking at his recent quote, it seems thatCregger really took Fincher’s advice in stride.He used the seasoned director’s words to push himself to make the best version of his artistic work. It also gave the up-and-coming filmmaker a good sense of what to work towards in future projects, including better “prep” for shoots.
Our Take On David Fincher’s Influence On Weapons
AfterseeingWeaponsmyself, I am not surprised to learn about how important Fincher was to the production process.Movies likeGone Girlare structurally unique, but directed with a level of confidence that helps pull the audience along with their every conceit.
Weaponsfeels very in line with these sensibilities. I did not go in expecting it to be set up how it was, but once I discovered how it was operating, I was transfixed by the journey the film was taking me on. I hope Cregger and Fincher cross paths again if it means making another movie this good.
