Over the past few years, the horror genre has been in a bit of a renaissance. Plenty of critically acclaimed movies arrived in theaters to scare audiences, and make a ton of money in the process. But horror has always been rooted in franchises, with classics like Halloween and Child's Play recently returning to theaters. A new report indicates that the Scream franchise might be heading back to theaters, and Neve Campbell is in early talks to reprise her role as Sidney Prescott. She recently explained how the property can continue in theaters without the late horror legend Wes Craven.
Wes Craven was an iconic horror director, who brought new life to slashers in the 90s with the Scream franchise. The movies have a mixture of comedy and grisly horror, with deep cut references to the history of the genre. It's hard to imagine Scream 5 happening without Craven, but Neve Campbell recently spoke to how Ready or Not filmmakers Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett are approaching the project. As she said,
I definitely had a period where I was thinking it would just be too odd to do a movie without Wes, and I wasn’t certain that I would want to do that. But, I think enough time has passed. I got this really, really respectful letter from the directors [Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett] of the new one. They came to me with Scream 5, and these directors are incredibly talented. They wrote a letter honoring Wes in such a beautiful way, and they expressed that the reason they make horror movies is because of Wes and the Scream films. They also expressed how blown away they are at the idea of actually getting an opportunity to make one of them and how much they want to honor and respect Wes’ vision. It was just beautiful, and I was really grateful. I had really thought that the only way I’d step into a new project with new directors is if they really wanted to honor him.
Well, that's certainly a relief. It looks like the filmmakers who are developing Scream 5 truly understand the power they have by continuing with Wes Craven's legacy. As such, they should approach the possible sequel with reverence for the originals, and hopefully crafting a new installments that fits into the the world that's already been established.
The Scream franchise and Wes Craven's memory are no doubt important to Neve Campbell, as she's played Sidney Prescott in four movies across the years. Scream is arguably what she's most known for, although she's continually worked in TV and film throughout the years. The upcoming fifth movie has to have the right tone in order to connect with Craven's previous four movies, something that Campbell seems confident in.
Of course, there's no guarantee that Scream 5 comes to fruition and that Neve Campbell and her co-stars Courteney cox and David Arquette are going to appear. But Campbell is clearly in talks with the new filmmakers, which is a good sign. Later in her conversation with THR, the House of Cards alum explained how early the talks truly are, saying:
So, we’ll see. We’re just in the beginning phases of negotiations, and we’ll have to see where it goes with COVID and everything. There are a lot of things up in the air such as when we’ll actually get to make the movie and how we can even reenter this business at the moment.
Only time will tell what happens with Scream 5, but horror fans are no doubt hoping that the project becomes a reality with the original cast. The trio of heroes survived Scream 4, so they should presumably appear for another murderous adventure. I'm also personally hoping that Hayden Panettiere reprises her role as Kirby, as I'm not convinced she actually died in the last movie.
CinemaBlend will keep Screams fans updated as new details become public about the possible fifth movie. In the meantime, check out our 2020 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
