Home / Arts and Entertainment / Aunt Gladys' Sinister Ritual Exposes Maybrook Elementary's Haunting Disappearances
Aunt Gladys' Sinister Ritual Exposes Maybrook Elementary's Haunting Disappearances
9 Aug
Summary
- Amy Madigan's captivating performance as Aunt Gladys in Weapons
- Aunt Gladys uses voodoo-like Satanic ritual to control victims
- 17 out of 18 children in Ms. Gandy's class mysteriously vanished
The new horror movie Weapons, which premiered at the end of July 2025, has been generating significant buzz, thanks in large part to the captivating performance of veteran actress Amy Madigan. While the film features a star-studded cast, including Julia Garner, Josh Brolin, and Alden Ehrenreich, it is Madigan's role as Aunt Gladys that has truly captured the attention of audiences.
Madigan's character, Aunt Gladys, is the secret weapon of Weapons. She uses a voodoo-like Satanic ritual to control the actions of anyone she pleases, as long as she has some kind of personal item of theirs. The ritual leaves the victims in a comatose, puppet-like state, responding immediately to her every command. It also seems to revitalize her health, as if she's syphoning off their life force.
The film's opening sequence sets the stage, with a child narrator explaining how one morning, on a seemingly random Wednesday, 17 out of 18 children in Ms. Gandy's (Garner) Maybrook Elementary School classroom woke up in the middle of the night at exactly 2:17 a.m. and ran out of their homes, never to return. The only one who didn't vanish was the young Alex Lilly (Cary Christopher), and the reasons continue to confound everyone in town.
As the story unfolds, Aunt Gladys comes to live with the Lilly family, and it becomes clear that she is the driving force behind the mysterious disappearances. She pressures the young Alex to find her new victims to maintain her health, and he turns to his classmates, stealing items from their cubbies at school and giving them to Gladys to bewitch.
Madigan's performance as the sinister Aunt Gladys has been widely praised, with her co-stars, including Brolin and Ehrenreich, expressing their awe at her ability to seamlessly transition from a sweet, elderly woman to a ruthless, intimidating figure. The makeup and wig used to transform Madigan into Aunt Gladys have also been noted as a key element in the character's unsettling appearance.
