There is nothing quite like the Scream franchise. Pioneering in every way upon its initial, its rotating cast of characters, both new and legacy, have carried it through the times, from the late nineties to modern day. There have been some excellent instalments (the original of course, along with a surprisingly successful number four, and an effective relaunch in the form of five), and some lesser excellent (two, three, though still enjoyable, and number six, exciting in its revamp of location, but less so on the storyline front). Of number seven, released this year, the consensus is divided – on one hand, it’s a Scream film. The fans will watch with glee, those less familiar will see a slasher with a certain weight. But it is with this latest instalment that it becomes clear Scream has lost its way.
A change of focus following the firing of Melissa Barrera and the consequential departure of Jenna Ortega places us back in legacy character Sidney’s (Neve Campbell) life, and her difficult relationship with her daughter Tatum (X) in a new town where she owns a yummy mummy coffee shop. Unfortunately for her, Ghostface is back – in the form of Stu (Matthew Lillard), one of the original killers whose death was never, one hundred percent, confirmed. Naturally, it’s 2026, and so it is likely AI-generated to murk the waters and bring back some unwanted memories – or is it?
Campbell’s return after two films on partial hiatus is a much awaited delight – she fits back into the narrative effortlessly, almost as though she never left. Reprising her role is Courteney Cox as the insatiable journalist Gale Weathers, who by now has seen it all, since she is the only cast member to feature in all seven films. Aside from the twins (X/X), the cast – and list of suspects – is entirely new, comprised of Tatum and Sidney’s husband Mark, and Tatum’s band of friends, who are naturally all picked off one by one. From here, the narrative divides into two – while Sidney and Gale do some good old fashion investigating into Stu’s “past”, the twins take it upon themselves to talk Tatum and friends through what to expect, as Ghostface prepares to strike again. There are some very creative death scenes at play here thanks to Kevin Williamson’s script, but the main issue with Scream 7 is that the band of friends is just not strong enough to uphold the narrative – Mackenzie Grace is chronically underused, and from there, it’s one cardboard cutout kill after another, with the occasional trope without twist (never trust the boyfriend). Other instalments have always had a few “carry-overs” from the previous film – the ever sweet Dewey (David Arquette), Randy Meeks, the Carpenter sisters. Though the Meeks twins are as always strong characters, they are virtually non-present, which does the film a major disservice. Instead, Scream 7 focuses on Sidney and more particularly her relationship with her daughter, who has struggled under the weight of being the daughter of a strange sort of celebrity – unfortunately, she is largely forgettable as a character despite a satisfying, if predictable, arc.
Scream 7 largely doesn’t flunk because it is fun – however, the fact that the killer reveal is the most disappointing of the franchise cannot be disputed. In the end, this feels like a lack of sufficient judgement – what Scream really needs is another revamp. Just as there an infinite number of film-in-film Stabs, I am of the party that Scream has still not run dry. Nevertheless, for it to succeed, a new leading cast has to be established, one that isn’t simply glazed over and killed off in minutes – after Sidney and Gale, and Samantha and Tara, someone, just like Ghostface, needs to take over.
