Warner Bros.Zach Cregger’s Weapons leaves many questions unanswered, but is one of them Gladys’ age? A new theory has emerged that, if true, makes the horror movie even darker than it already is.
If you’ve seen Cregger’s Barbarian, you’ll know to expect mayhem – especially in the third act. But even armed with this knowledge, nothing will prepare you for Weapons’ blood-soaked finale.
Before reaching this point, the new movie unravels a chilling small-town mystery: a classroom of children vanish without explanation, all fleeing their homes at exactly 2.17am on the same morning.
The only survivor is Alex Lilly, whose great aunt Gladys comes to stay. A blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment during their interaction has sparked one of the film’s creepiest theories yet. Warning: spoilers ahead!
Weapons theory suggests Gladys is older than she looks
The theory goes that Gladys is a lot older than she claims, and could be upwards of 200 years old. There’s a clue that supports this idea: while speaking to Alex about what’s happened to his parents, she says they’re suffering from “consumption.”
Now, “consumption” was a word used in the 1800s to describe tuberculosis – a contagious disease that affects the lungs. The reason for its nickname was due to the fact that it wasted away (or “consumed”) the body.
Gladys uses a parasitic type of witchcraft whereby she sucks the life out of others to transfer to herself. Could it be that she’s been doing this since the 1800s?
If true, this makes Gladys an even more terrifying threat, knowing she’s been putting victims under her spells and honing her witchcraft for centuries.
TikToker Polina presented this theory in a new video, saying, “I actually believe Gladys in Weapons is much older than she appears, even in this state…
“Gladys in this film is such a menacing presence because she’s such a great representation of the types of problems that people overlook and people ignore until they escalate far beyond being able to repair them easily.”
“She just signifies the types of issues that people overlook and people ignore because of how preoccupied they are with their own lives,” added Polina.
“When she first comes to town, she is obviously very, very ill, and what she does is that she starts to suck the life out of Alex’s parents first, and then out of his classmates as well.
“And she goes so unnoticed for such a long time despite there being clear warning signs around Alex but also her presence as well.”
The TikToker then highlighted the “consumption” detail, stating that the word “hasn’t been used for tuberculosis in a very long time.”
“And to me that raises a very big question of exactly how old is Gladys and how long has she been going around and kind of sucking the life force out of people to stay young and healthy? My assumption is that it would be quite a long time,” she said.
Gladys theory sparks debate
Warner Bros.While plenty of fans agree, this detail has sparked other theories, including that “consumption” is a double entendre used to reflect Gladys’ parasitic powers – she’s “consuming” the Lilly parents’ life force.
Among those who agree, one wrote, “When she said consumption. I was like oh she is old,” while another said, “She’s like 200 years old.” A third added, “She’s a vampire/witch, hundreds of years old.”
However, one person commented, “That was a reference to how she was consuming the parents i.e. feeding off their energy. It’s in line with the many references to parasites throughout the film.”
A second agreed, “People have literally fought me for saying it was a double entendre, I’m glad I’m not the only one who saw that.”
The theory has also raised more questions, especially around the fact that Alex’s mom seemingly already met Gladys… but what if she’s remembering her wrong?
“But how did Alex’s mom never know anything? I mean they’re sisters right?” asked one, to which another replied, “She was the mum’s aunt and Alex’s great aunt so she could just be reasonably old or have just replaced the real aunt without anyone knowing.”
“I think she isn’t an actual relative of the family but replaced the actual aunt. The dad said that the mom hasn’t seen her in 15 years so it could be that she’s just pretending,” wrote another.
A third chimed in, “She is ancient and uses blood magic. Alex also uses blood magic and without being taught which means they are connected and he is powerful.
“She salted the door and set protection from Alex and she intended to take him with her. He is her descendant.”
Finally, some fans simply want to know more about Gladys. “I want her backstory,” said one, with another adding, “I wish towards the end they gave her backstory like they gave the others or even at the very end.”
If you agree, you might be in luck, as multiple sources told The Hollywood Reporter that a prequel to Weapons that explores the origins of Gladys is on the cards.
Weapons is in cinemas now. You can also read our breakdown of the ending, the true story behind it, and whether Gladys is demonic.
