[This story includes major spoilers from past Scream films.]
Incoming: Another anonymous phone call.
For nearly three decades, the Scream franchise has seen iconic final girl Sidney Prescott (played by Neve Campbell) outlive the numerous killers that hide behind Ghostface’s mask while attacking Sidney, her friends and anyone else who gets in the way.
The original Scream movie debuted in 1996 and was directed by the late Wes Craven, as were its sequels through 2011’s Scream 4. Seven years after Craven died in 2015, the slasher franchise was revived in 2022 with Scream, directed by Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin. That film honored Craven and saw the return of Campbell, along with original franchise stars Courteney Cox and David Arquette. However, Campbell was absent from the most recent sequel, 2023’s Scream VI.
Also missing from the franchise’s future are Jenna Ortega and Melissa Barrera, who led the two revival films. They were both set to star in Scream 7 until Barrera was fired in November 2023 due to her social media posts about the Israel-Hamas war. Shortly after being let go, Ortega also exited the project — but voluntarily.
Since the franchise was revamped three years ago, the new Ghostface killers have only gotten more violent. But in Ashley Cullins’ Scream tell-all book, Your Favorite Scary Movie: How the Scream Films Rewrote the Rules of Horror, Scream 7‘s director, Kevin Williamson, revealed that with Campbell coming back, she wanted less gore. “Neve wants to go back to the first one and find the suspense and really concentrate on scary and not bloody,” he said.
But with Scream 7 on the horizon, it’s safe to expect betrayals and key characters returning to the franchise as it prepares to make a killer return next year.
Read on for all the details The Hollywood Reporter has on the next installment.
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When Will ‘Scream 7’ Be Released?
Image Credit: Everett Collection On Oct. 1, 2024, Campbell and Kevin Williamson, who penned the script to Craven’s ’96 film, announced in a joint post on Instagram that Scream 7 will be released by Paramount on Friday, Feb. 27, 2026. “It’s gonna be a killer 2026. #Scream7,” read the caption to a photo of its calendar date.
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How Did the Last Film End?
Image Credit: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Media Group The end of Scream VI saw Barrera and Ortega make it out alive following the brutal attacks of three Ghostfaces: Detective Bailey (Dermot Mulroney), Quinn Bailey (Liana Liberato) and Ethan Landry (Jack Champion). And after the villains are killed with help from Kirby — played by Hayden Panettiere, who returned to the franchise for the first time since Scream 4 — Sam (Barrera) and Tara (Ortega)’s relationship grows closer.
Earlier in the film, Gale (Cox) survives being stabbed several times by a Ghostface in her apartment, but before she passes out, she says, “Tell Sidney he never got me.” More survivors include siblings Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown) and Chad (Mason Gooding).
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The Legacy Trio Is Coming Back
Image Credit: Eugene Gologursky/Getty Images; Leon Bennett/Getty Images; Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images Yes, the three main characters in the Scream franchise, Sidney Prescott (Campbell), Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) and Dewey Riley (David Arquette) are all returning. And one is even coming back from the dead.
Campbell was first out of the group, and she announced she was coming back in March 2024, after not appearing in Scream VI due to a salary dispute with its producer Spyglass. In the book, Your Favorite Scary Movie: How the Scream Films Rewrote the Rules of Horror, Campbell elaborated about why she left the franchise and then decided to return for No. 7.
“I knew I wouldn’t be able to walk on set if I wasn’t being paid what I deserve after decades of doing these films. I love these movies and the idea of them carrying on without me made me sad, but it wasn’t worth feeling disrespected,” she said. “So, I didn’t watch the movie, and I didn’t pay any attention to how it was doing. I love all those actors. I have no ill will towards anybody who made the movie. I’m happy for anyone who gets to be a part of these films. But, for me, it wasn’t the right decision to go and be in the film. And now, in the end, it’s come back around and I’m very grateful.”
In December 2024, Cox signed on to return as well. The Friends alum was last in Scream VI where she survived another stabbing.
Arquette, who was married to Cox in real-life and in the franchise, joined the project in March 2025. However, it’s unclear how Dewey is returning since he was killed in 2022’s Scream by Amber, played by Mikey Madison — the only Ghostface who’s won an Oscar.
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Who Else Is in the Cast?
Image Credit: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images; Frazer Harrison/Getty Images; Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images; Kevin Mazur/Getty Images; Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images Matthew Lillard, who played Stu Macher, the original co-Ghostface killer (along with Skeet Ulrich), is returning. So are Mason Gooding and Jasmin Savoy Brown, who play siblings Chad and Mindy in the revival films. Scream 3‘s Ghostface, Roman Bridger, who is also Sidney’s half-brother, played by Scott Foley, is coming back, too.
New additions to the cast include Joel McHale, Anna Camp, Mckenna Grace, Isabel May, Michelle Randolph, Ethan Embry, Mark Consuelos, Jimmy Tatro, Celeste O’Connor, Asa Germann and Sam Rechner.
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And What Have They Teased?
Image Credit: Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Media Lillard told CBR earlier this month that he was “a little nervous” about playing Stu again. “I don’t want to be the one who ends up killing the franchise forever,” he said. “I’m hopeful that, you know, we deliver. Having Kevin back, having Neve in the fold again as the lead hero. You know, I think that the future is bright.”
Foley, another Ghostface alum who supposedly died, appeared on Good Morning America in March to discuss his return. “My character — spoiler alert —25 years ago, I was the killer in Scream 3. He was brutally taken to town and killed,” he said. “Now I’m back in Scream 7, and I’m not sure how it’s going to work.” He said on Live! with Kelly and Mark that he has a “small part.”
Dewey’s appearance in Scream 7 “wasn’t supposed to be released, it was supposed to be a surprise,” Arquette told ComingSoon.net last month. “I’m not really supposed to talk about it too much, but Kevin Williamson was directing and that was a real thrill. And it’s amazing to see him be able to have that opportunity and to get Neve back in this one, and Matthew, I mean it’s it’s exciting. I love playing the role of Dewey and will always love playing the role of Dewey.”
Gooding teased how violent viewers can expect the new Ghostface to be. “This is the most brutal I think Ghostface has been from an anatomically logistical standpoint,” he told Just Jared in February. “There is a lot of blood and viscera, and I feel like with Kevin Williamson directing, fans have a lot to look forward to with what we do to these characters.”
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Who Is Directing?
Image Credit: Getty Images Williamson directs Scream 7. He penned the scripts for Scream, Scream 2 and Scream 4 and executive produced Scream (2022).
The screenwriter took over directing duties from Christopher Landon, originally set to helm the film before exiting in December 2023. The Drop director tweeted at the time, “It was a dream job that turned into a nightmare.” Last month, he revealed to Vanity Fair that he left the project because of the death threats he received from fans, who blamed him for Barrera’s departure. However, he sent the record straight, saying he “did not fire her” and “had no control of the situation at all.”
In Your Favorite Scary Movie: How the Scream Films Rewrote the Rules of Horror, Landon further explained: “I made my decision to walk away about a week after they fired [Melissa]. There was no movie anymore. The whole script was about her. I didn’t sign on to make a Scream movie,” he said. “I signed on to make that movie. When that movie no longer existed, I moved on.”
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Who Are the Other Creatives?
Image Credit: Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick wrote the script. They co-wrote the previous revival films, Scream and Scream VI. The Radio Silence team of Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett and Chad Villella will executive produce.
Composer Marco Beltrami, who scored the first four installments, is also returning.
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What’s the Plot?
Image Credit: Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Media While there hasn’t been an official logline posted for the film, Campbell will play a bigger role in this installment than she did in Scream (2022). “We are going to follow Sidney,” the actress told Entertainment Tonight in July 2024.
In Your Favorite Scary Movie: How the Scream Films Rewrote the Rules of Horror, Williamson teased that he intends to keep the iconic final girl’s title intact. “I have made it very clear, I think publicly too, that Sidney has been through so much torment, and she has been through so much trauma, that to give her anything less than a happy ending is mean. It’s just sacrilegious,” he said.
For Campbell, her priority is focusing on Sidney’s family. “Think about how challenging it would be to make the choice to even have a child if you were Sidney Prescott. Then, if you did have children, the stress and fear that you would live under about your history coming back to you,” she said. “I don’t want to give it away, but how she chooses to parent is a big choice and perhaps different than how others might.”
May was cast as Sidney’s daughter, and McHale plays Mark Evans, Sidney’s husband.
