It’s a very exciting time to be a horror fan, as the genre’s current renaissance has resulted in some of the best horror movies returning to theaters via new sequels or reboots. That was definitely the case with Wes Craven’s Scream, with the 2022 movie being a huge hit that inspired another sequel. Scream VI is just a few months away, and the directors have teased some major changes from the last movie. And honestly, sign me up– I was sold thanks to the full trailer.
There was a ton of pressure on directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett for the last Scream movie, as it was the first installment not helmed by the late icon Wes Craven. But they built a slasher sequel that fit right in with the rest of the franchise, while also making A+ commentary on the state of the horror genre. But the pair of filmmakers recently spoke to NME about their bolder plans for Scream VI. As Gillett put it:
Part of our assignment on Scream 5 was to play the greatest hits, to really show that we were part of a long lineage of characters. With Scream VI we wanted to subvert that warm blanket, and make something that’s grittier and rawer.
Well, that’s certainly exciting. The story of Scream VI is going from Woodsboro to New York City, and it looks like that new setting is really going to change up the movie’s tension and chase sequences. Sounds like the pair of filmmakers who are at the movie’s helm are ready to mess with expectations and raise the bar in a new way. Is it March yet?
Director: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett
Writer: James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick
Cast: Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, Courteney Cox, Hayden Panettiere, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Mason Gooding, Dermot Mulroney.
Release Date/Platform: March 10th in theaters.
Tyler Gillett’s comments to NME once again show how he and his filmmaking partner are such giant fans of the Scream franchise as a whole. And now that they’ve got their sea legs and succeeded by making a more classic sequel, they’re ready for Scream VI to bring something new to the table. Given their work on the last movie and Ready or Not, I’m eager to see what twists are coming.
Later in that same interview, Tyler Gillett further explained how he and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin wanted to go harder in Scream VI. He also revealed how working on the last sequel gave them the confidence to swing hard for chapter six. In his words,
It’s relentless and really visceral. There’s a lot more of Matt and I in this movie. I think that we had to make Scream 5 in order to feel like we had permission to do this one. It has all of the ingredients, all of the things that we love about the franchise but it has an attitude that’s a little bit different. We think people are going to be really excited about it.
While there’s always comedic moments and commentary on film in the Scream franchise, it’s also a franchise with truly brutal violence. And it sounds like things are going to be even more visceral when our group of survivors faces off against Ghostface in the Big Apple. As a reminder, you can check out Scream VI’s trailer below:
Luckily for us, the footage seen above is fairly limited. Not much is known about the contents of the movie, other than the new Ghostface seemingly has a shrine to the previous killers. The trailer also got fans super concerned for Courteney Cox’s Gale Weathers, who was shown facing off against the killer in her home. But with Scream VI being the first movie without Sidney and Dewey, could they really kill off the only other OG?
All will be revealed when Scream VI hits theaters on March 10th. In the meantime, check out the 2023 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience. Clearly it’s going to be a good year for horror, as it kicked off with the campy hit M3GAN.
