New Line Nabs ‘Barbarian’ Filmmaker Zach Cregger’s ‘Weapons’ After Intense Multi-Studio Bidding War

EXCLUSIVE: A highly competitive bidding war ended with New Line Cinema paying high six-figures in an outright buy for Victor Sweetser’s hot horror short story, Occupant. Barbarian’s Zach Creggers, Vertigo’s Roy Lee and Ground Control’s Scott Glassgold are on board to produce alongside, John Poliquin.  Deadline revealed the auction as it was heating up today. It is a testament to the power of genre IP.

EXCLUSIVE: The Good Place creator Mike Schur has reunited with the hit comedy’s star Ted Danson for The Mole Agent, a new serialized comedy, which has hit the premium/streaming marketplace, sparking heated bidding, sources tell Deadline. The project is based on the 2020 Chilean feature documentary The Mole Agent and hails from Schur’s longtime studio home, Universal Television. I hear the networks/platforms pursuing the show include Netflix, Apple TV+, Prime Video and HBO/Max.

Two years ago to this very day, Seth Rudetsky, the Broadway composer, musician, podcaster, host of a show on SiriusXM radio, fundraiser, musical cruise host, conveyer of pop culture trivia and, now, “source music consultant,” received a text from Craig Mazin, the screenwriter, director and producer. Mazin was friends with Ted Griffin, who is married to Sutton Foster, who knows, as does seemingly everybody else in musical theater, Rudetsky.

EXCLUSIVE: Days after a feverish auction wrapped up for Weapons, the town is still talking about the wake left in its path. The Dish hears that the deal for the Zach Cregger-directed horror film is remarkable in that this is only Cregger’s second film — after the highly profitable debut Barbarian — and it sold to New Line for an overall sum around $38 million, including the budget 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.

Hot genre filmmaker Zach Cregger and his Barbarian collaborators have sold yet another mysterious feature project to New Line, following the auction of their horror, Weapons.

New Line has acquired “Companion” from writer and director Drew Hancock and the filmmaking team behind the breakout horror hit “Barbarian” in a competitive situation.“Companion” will be Hancock’s directorial debut from his original screenplay. Plot details are being kept under wraps.The film being is fast tracked for a 2023 production start.Fresh on the heels of winning a multi-studio bidding war for Zach Cregger’s next film “Weapons,” New Line is joining forces again with the filmmaking team behind the critically acclaimed hit horror film “Barbarian.” Producers on “Companion” are BoulderLight’s Raphael Margules and J.D.

Barbarian producer BoulderLight Pictures has secured a multi-year first-look feature agreement with New Line Cinema, Deadline has confirmed.

On the mend — again. Jay Leno was involved in a scary motorcycle accident shortly after being hospitalized for severe burns.

French gender equality and diversity group Le Collectif 50/50 has hit out at the lack of female representation at the upcoming César awards, France’s equivalent to the Oscars.

Police have arrested a 41-year-old man in connection with an alleged weapons incident on the streets of a quiet village. Officers, including specialist armed response units, were called to an address in Port Elphinstone, immediately south of Inverurie, Aberdeenshire, shortly before 3pm on Wednesday, January 25.

EXCLUSIVE: New Line has set Secret Headquarters filmmakers Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman to direct Undo, from Will Simmons’ 2022 Black List screenplay. The action thriller is currently in development.

One of the best surprises of 2022 has to be “Barbarian.” Not only is it surprising because of the story, which completely catches people off guard with its smart writing and fun twists, but the film also shocks people when they find out that Zach Cregger is the writer-director.

New Line Cinema won a heated auction to win Weapons, a film it will fast track with the filmmaking team behind the horror thriller Barbarian. Zach Cregger wrote the script and will direct, and he’ll produce alongside his Barbarian producing team: Roy Lee of Vertigo and J.D. Lifshitz and Raphael Margules of BoulderLight Pictures. Vertigo’s Miri Yoon also produces.

Searchlight has won a fierce bidding war for one of the buzziest Sundance crowd-pleasers. The Disney-owned distributor has closed a deal for the well-reviewed and well-received “Theater Camp,” with distribution rights going for around $10 million.