Deadline Hollywood reported that New Line Cinema won the spec script in a bidding war against, allegedly, Universal, Netflix and Sony/TriStar. The Hollywood Reporter detailed that part of the deal were a eight figure sum of money, a guaranteed greenlight for production, final cut privileges for Cregger, interest in a backend pot and, most importantly in closing the deal, the guarantee of a theatrical release. Insiders called it a unprecedented deal in modern times and is compared to M. Night Shyamalan deals post The Sixth Sense (1999).
Shortly after the announcement of the film, first rumors stated that the story will revolve around "witchcraft and missing children".
Netflix was ready to pay more money upfront than New Line, but a assured theatrical release and New Line's track record with horror were the better selling point.
Weapons script is said to be tonally in the vein of Magnolia (1999) from filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson. Magnolia and, reportedly Weapons as well, feature multiple story threads that are interrelated to one another.
Deadline reported that the deal was sold to New Line for 38 million dollars, which included the budget for the film and Cregger getting $5 million to direct, and $10 million total when that sum is added to his fees for scripting and producing alongside Vertigo's Roy Lee and Miri Yoon, and J.D. Lifshitz and Raphael Margules.
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