Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for ‘Weapons’AfterJulia Garnerbecame renowned for playing Ruth Langmore in the hit Netflix series,Ozark, andwon three Primetime Emmys for the role, she became very much in demand by filmmakers wanting to bring that level of drama to their features. For the past few years, Garner was mainly doing smaller indie dramas likeThe AssistantandThe Royal Hotel, but it was only a matter of time before studios came a-calling.This year alone, Garner has appeared in three high-profile studio genre films, buteveryone has mostly been talking about her role as Justine in Zach Cregger’s new horror film,Weapons.
There’s been word Cregger had an entirely different cast forWeaponsat one point, but had to recast due to the actors’ strike and how that messed up schedules. Even so,Cregger knew immediately that Garner was perfect for the roleafter losing Norwegian actorRenate ReinvefromThe Worst Person in the World:
I Zoomed with Julia, and within like three minutes, I knew she was the one because she’s so intelligent. Just the way she’d already read the script and the way she talked about the character, it was like, ‘This is what I’ve been looking for.’ I’d been looking for someone who could smell the essence of this and knew exactly how to come in. I think Julia’s smarter than I am, so I knew it was gonna be in good hands with her.
Justine in ‘Weapons’ is Very Different from Julia Garner’s Previous Roles
Julia Garner is a well-rounded actor in terms of the roles she takes, from quieter ones like inThe Assistant, loosely based on the predatory activities of studio execHarvey Weinstein, to the cosmic Silver Surfer in last month’sThe Fantastic Four: First Steps. Although the first of those roles was relatively dialogue-free and mostly observant, her role as Ruth onOzark, and her other roles this year, have been very strong women constantly standing up for their ideals.It’s hard to make comparisons withWeapons' Justine, who already seems damagedbefore the tragic incident that makes her the target for much ire from the townsfolk.
At first, Justine might just seem like an ordinary elementary school teacher, whose entire class, all but one student, just happens to have gone missing in the middle of the night. As we spend more time with Justine, we learn these missing kids are just one of many problems she’s facing, and it takes an actor of Garner’s caliber to make such a character truly work. After facing an assembly of angry parents, all accusing and blaming her for what happened, we begin to see how damaged she already is. Shortly after that assembly gone wrong, Justine quickly turns to the bottle to help her get through the difficult times. She then starts texting her ex, a similarly troubled town policeman named Paul (Alden Ehrenreich), who is now married to another woman, and they have a tryst. Paul’s wife Donna (June Diane Raphael) finds out and violently confronts Justine.Those are just two of Justine’s many questionable decisionsbefore she confronts her sole remaining student, Alex, and follows him home, despite being told explicitly by the principal to just leave the poor boy alone.
Julia Garner Stands Out in a Star-Studded Cast
With Cregger’s use of an unconventional storytelling method to investigate the mystery behind Justine’s missing students,Weaponsis not the typical movie with a single protagonist throughout.Reportedly inspired byPaul Thomas Anderson’sMagnolia,Justine gets the first and longest chapter inWeapons, leading up to a truly horrifying moment. As we start to meet the other characters in this ensemble horror film, the movie drifts away from Justine, but by this point,Garner has already made enough of an impact on the viewer that we welcome her return later.While the movie does go just as deep into the lives of other characters in the movie, Justine’s segment truly sets things up in a way in which Cregger can readily spend time with others, while still leaving you wondering how Justine is faring.
Eventually, these characters do begin converging, and that’s when things start getting more interesting, especially as Justine teams withJosh Brolin’s Archer to dig deeper into the kids' disappearance. The fact that Garner can hold her own in scenes with an Oscar-nominated actor like Brolin, as well as against another Oscar nominee,Amy Madigan, who shows up later in the film as Alex’s aunt Gladys,confirms that Garner is more than ready to be taken seriously as a bona fide movie star.EvenJason Blum, producer of Garner’sWolf Manfrom earlier in the year,took to social mediato specifically proclaim his respect for Garner’s performance in Cregger’s film:
I admire actors who take big swings + Julia Garner does that every time. She’s proven herself in so many ways, but what she does in #Weapons really stuck w/me. Horror isn’t easy. It asks a lot. She gives a gutsy performance. She didn’t have to go that hard, but she did. And it’s why I’m such a fan.
And yet, as great a performance as Garner gives inWeapons, it’s still a horror movie which, as we know all too well, will make it tough for her to get any attention from Oscar voters.Toni Collettelearned that the hard way when she was snubbed forher performance inAri Aster’sHereditary,butDemi Moore’s nomination for last year’sThe Substancegives us some hope that things are changing. WithWeapons, Garner delivers a character performance with as much weight and depth as her Ruth inOzark, andfew will walk out ofWeaponsnot being impressed by Garner and excited to see what she does next.
