After Losing its Director and Stars, Scream VII Has Been Forced Back to Basics
The franchise godfather tries on a new hat.
The Scream franchise has encountered problems beyond figuring out how to make the reveal of the murderer shocking each and every time. After Scream VI seemed to reinvigorate the classic slasher with a new location and new characters, the fate of the franchise was thrown into question after star Melissa Barrera was fired from Scream VII after using social media to weigh in on the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. Soon afterward, fellow Scream VI star Jenna Ortega voluntarily left the project for unrelated reasons, and a few weeks after that, director Christopher Landon dropped out too, calling the movie “a dream job that turned into a nightmare.”
Where does Scream VII go from here? The answer is close to home, but bringing back familiar names is a big risk.
Neve Campbell has played Sidney Prescott in nearly every Scream movie, and now she’s coming back.
On Tuesday, original Scream star Neve Campbell announced she would appear in Scream VII after missing Scream VI due to a pay dispute. “My appreciation for these films and for what they have meant to me, has never waned,” she wrote on Instagram. “I’m very happy and proud to say I’ve been asked, in the most respectful way, to bring Sidney back to the screen and I couldn’t be more thrilled!!!”
It’s been over a decade since Campbell appeared in Scream 4, but the most intriguing part of her announcement was that screenwriter Kevin Williamson, who co-created the Scream franchise alongside Wes Craven, will direct the upcoming movie, replacing Christopher Landon. Although Campbell has written classic horror hits like Scream, The Faculty, and I Know What You Did Last Summer, Williamson has only directed one feature, the 1999 critical and commercial bomb Teaching Mrs. Tingle.
Scream writer Kevin Williamson will direct — but not write — Scream VII.
Both choices seem designed to bring the franchise back to its roots, but while Sidney Prescott is synonymous with Scream, her presence may not make up for the loss of two popular leads from Scream VI. Williamson, meanwhile, may know Scream inside and out, but he hasn’t sat in the director’s chair in 25 years. Both have their work cut out for them to make the transition from Scream VI to Scream VII seamless.
Only time will tell if Scream’s next chapter can keep the franchise rolling. It may have lost the talent that brought it into a new era, but it’s brought back the talent that gave this saga its reputation in the first place. Let’s hope that’s enough.
