Fans of Zach Cregger’s horror hit Barbarian have some great news on their hands: a new viral website promoting his latest film, Weapons, has a feature that suggests that it takes place in the same universe as the Georgina Campbell-led film. Bloody Disgusting discovered that the website, titled Maybrook News, features a small connection to Barbarian in addition to recently-released images from the film for fans to find as they wait patiently for a trailer.
The main “article” on the site — which looks built to resemble a local news bulletin from the dawn of the Internet age — is currently just a teaser about the plot of Weapons, wherein seventeen children mysteriously disappear from their homes around Maybrook at exactly 2:17 AM. “A chilling mystery has gripped the small town of Maybrook after 17 children voluntarily left their homes Wednesday morning,” the piece reads. “Authorities are baffled by the inexplicable disappearance, which has shaken the community to its core”:
Upon investigation, front door camera footage showed the children leaving their homes at 2:17am Wednesday morning without any signs of force. Since then, little information has surfaced, and the case continues to baffle investigators.
In response, a school gathering was held, where growing unease among parents became clear. As the town struggles to understand what happened, officials continue to urge the public for any leads, while Maybrook is left waiting for answers.
The website also allows users to sign up for updates on the film’s release, which is coming this summer, but another link on the page takes audiences to a story titled, “Underground Prison Discovered in Rental Home,” with a banner image of a still from Barbarian. “Police were alerted after Tess Marshall, 28, was discovered injured and disoriented outside the Barberry Street property,” the piece says. “What began as a simple wellness check quickly turned into a large-scale crime scene. Investigators uncovered a network of hidden tunnels beneath the home, sparking questions about the property’s history and potential connection to unsolved disappearances dating back decades.”
Is this just a clever marketing ploy to entice fans of Creggers’ work? Probably. Several of these viral websites have popped up before, including for Steven Soderbergh’s recent paranormal film Presence, and this one may potentially hint at a trailer release soon, given the first images from the film being released earlier today. But it could lead to something bigger — we’ll just have to wait and see.
Weapons, which stars Josh Brolin, Alden Ehrenreich, Benedict Wong, and Austin Abrams, hits theaters on August 8.
