In June 2022, Neve Campbell broke the hearts of millions of horror fans when she confirmed that she would no longer return as Sidney Prescott in Scream 6 due to compensation issues. Just like that, the original “final girl” wouldn’t be a part of the slasher-horror franchise that she’s been the face of for the better part of the past three decades. But, with Scream 7 losing its pair of lead protagonists, it appears that Campbell might have to step in to save the day.
In an interview with Variety at the BAFTA Tea event at the Maybourne hotel in Beverly Hills, Campbell revealed she will return “under the right circumstances.” Although it’s unclear what these circumstances should be, certainly, Campbell has the kind of leverage now that she didn’t have before.
Unfortunately, even if Campbell would return, the fate of Scream 7 still hangs in the balance following the tumultuous last couple of months after the successful of premiere of Scream 6 in early 2023.
Scream 7 currently doesn’t have a director with Christopher Landon exiting the project and the original directorial pair behind the reboot, Radio Silence, off doing other things. But, perhaps more importantly, Jenna Ortega has dropped out of the next Scream film with her co-star and on-screen sister, Melissa Barrera, given the boot due to her social media posts over the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Aside from Campbell, another silver lining for Scream 7 exists with the potential return of Courteney Cox, who plays the reporter-turned-writer, Gale Weathers – one of the only constants in the slasher franchise.
Although there isn’t an official confirmation of Cox’s return to the still-in-development third “requel”, the cancelation of the Starz horror-comedy series, Shining Vale, frees up Cox to take on a more involved role in what could potentially be her seventh Scream appearance.
Barrera and Ortega’s roles as the sisters, Sam and Tara Carpenter, would’ve likely guaranteed further installments. But, as both of them are gone for the foreseeable future, bringing back the franchise’s main legacy character, Sidney, along with Gale and others, is the only route left taking.
While Scream 6 wrote Sidney out by saying that she’s currently hinding in a safe place with her family, those who paid close attention to 2022’s Scream’s ending would know two things: Sydney still hasn’t gotten her closure and she’s now married to a certain Mark. The directors, Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, later confirmed this is the same Mark Kincaid that Patrick Dempsey played in Scream 3.
Given that Scream V and Scream VI mirrored Scream and Scream II, we could see Scream VII bringing back yet another familiar face in Dempsey, who, for those who’ve already forgotten, is a detective. Thus, Scream 7 could be Sydney’s chance to end things, once and for all.
The premise of Scream VII could see Sydney’s family either targeted and forced to go out of hiding by the what will be the 14th masked murderer or it might see her and her husband finally deciding to take a stand and live a life without worrying about getting stabbed in the back, quite literally.
The trio of Cox, Dempsey, and Campbell could help improve the chances of the next film’s success, along with the two younger leads that still remain (for now), the twins, Mindy and Chad, who are legacy children, and are played by Jasmin Savoy Brown and Mason Gooding, respectively.
Unfortunately, with the spark that reignited the requels now no longer part of the franchise, Scream 7 will have to do it. Although disappointing, wrapping things up is still better than forcing the series to go on for longer, risking franchise fatigue for the second time around.
