Joey Magidson
The Sunday Scaries are upon us once again! Yes, as the weekend concludes, most of us feel an oncoming sense of anticipatory dread about the week ahead. Anxiety about work manifests itself into a feeling that’s known as the Sunday Scaries. However, we at Awards Radar are here to combat that, by taking back the name. Now, we want you think about a horror-centric piece on the site when you hear the term. So, let us continue on with another installment of the Awards Radar Sunday Scaries! Today, we’re looking at what of the biggest horror franchise is planning to do with their latest sequel…
The Scream franchise is one I have a fair amount of affection for. Hell, not only have I ranked the installments in the series here, I’ve written about how this property is one of the most consistent, quality-wise (here). So, anticipation for Scream 7 should be high. However, there’s been a run of issues that have tripped up the film. Now, it’s back on track with some high profile news that we’ll address momentarily, but it does make the movie exist at a rougher intersection than normal. Why? Well, we can discuss.
Simply put, Scream 7 is in a weird spot. Initially announced after the success of Scream VI, it was going to have the same writers returning in Guy Busick and James Vanderbilt, but now it’s just the former, with the pair having Story By credits. So far, so good, right? The directing duo known as Radio Silence (Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett) was just going to produce, and initially the director was set to be Christopher Landon, but he dropped out. There also was Melissa Barrera getting fired and Jenna Ortega leaving the sequel. At one point, it appeared to be that the flick would just go away. Well, that’s not the case.
First up, the big news is that Neve Campbell is back. Notably, she had passed on Scream VI due to not being offered what she felt she was worth. So, her getting paid here is obviously a good thing. That being said, going back to her and presumably abandoning the Core Four might negate some of the goodwill. The franchise had always been able to look forward, and of late, had mixed old and new pretty well. Here? It seems like it’s mostly headed back, which could be a waste of Campbell, sadly.
Also of note is that the helmer is now the series’ original writer in Kevin Williamson. It’s a definite nod to the past, though the lack of experience is a change of pace from what the franchise has traditionally looked for. That’s part of what has me a bit more skeptical than usual here. He’s in many ways the voice of Scream, but can he take the next installment somewhere new?
Williamson directing and Campbell back to presumably star, makes me think that this is going to be a sequel less interested in reinventing the property and more about going backwards. I don’t mind fan service and nostalgia, of course, but Scream has usually been above that. The possibility that this could be a, frankly, boring sequel, well, it scares me.
Ultimately, we’ll see what Scream 7 turns out to be, and I’m obviously hoping for the best. It just appears that, right now, the producers panicked and went for the easy fix. Hopefully, it ends up being a good film. Hell, maybe it’ll be a great film. I’m just worried that the movie will be less interesting than it otherwise could have been. Time will tell…
Stay tuned for another Sunday Scaries installment next weekend!
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