Los Angeles, Aug. 13 -- Riding the crest of Weapons' resounding commercial triumph, filmmaker Zach Cregger is reportedly in preliminary negotiations with Warren Bros. and New Line Cinema to mount a prequel unravelling the macabre origins of Aunt Gladys, the flamboyantly crimson-wigged oddity.

It has been rendered with unsettling verve by Amy Madigan, whose bizarre allure appears poised to ignite a Halloween costume phenomenon.

One of Weapons' conceits is its chapter structure centering on particular characters, and sources say that Cregger actually had a chapter focused on Gladys and some of her backstory. He ultimately pulled that section from the script for length purposes. Now with the movie's wild success, that lost chapter would be e...