by After months of controversy, casting shakeups, and fan anxiety, Scream 7 finally slashes its way into theaters — and my immediate one-word reaction after seeing a preview last night was simple: Satisfying.
Not perfect. Far from it. Not franchise-redefining. But satisfying in a way longtime fans will appreciate.
Let’s get the IMDB / Wiki style preview out of the way…
Scream 7 (2026) is a sequel to Scream VI (2023) and the seventh installment in the Scream franchise. It is directed by Kevin Williamson from a screenplay he co-wrote with Guy Busick. It stars Neve Campbell once again leading an ensemble cast including Jasmin Savoy Brown, Mason Gooding and Courteney Cox reprising their roles from the previous films. New additions to the Scream family include Isabel May, Anna Camp, Michelle Randolph, Jimmy Tatro, Mckenna Grace, Asa Germann, Celeste O’Connor, Sam Rechner, Mark Consuelos, Tim Simons, and Joel McHale.
⚠️ Spoiler Alert ⚠️
If you haven’t seen Scream 7 yet, stop reading now. Major spoilers ahead.
A Legacy-Heavy Chapter (For Better or Worse)
With the Carpenter sisters completely absent — and I mean completely absent — the film makes a bold (and honestly jarring) decision to avoid even mentioning Melissa Barrera’s Sam Carpenter or Jenna Ortega’s Tara Carpenter. No references. No throwaway lines. Nothing. It’s a noticeable void, especially after Scream (2022) and Scream VI leaned so heavily on them.
Instead, the film re-centers itself fully around Neve Campbell’s Sidney Prescott-Evans, now firmly in “protective mom” mode. Campbell plays it beautifully. She’s convincing as a mother trying to shield her daughter from generational trauma — but when Ghostface calls, she still flips that switch into hardened final girl with ease. She hasn’t lost it.
And speaking of her daughter…
Isabel May’s Tatum Evans
Isabel May steps into the franchise as Tatum Evans, Sidney’s daughter. She’s strong, capable, and emotionally grounded — and honestly one of the better additions to the ensemble.
But I couldn’t shake one thought every time she was on screen:
She looks so much like Jennifer Lawrence it’s distracting. This isn’t a ‘bad’ thing… I really like Jennifer Lawrence. But during my first watch of this film it was something I really noticed.
That aside, she carries herself well and feels like a believable next-gen Prescott.
The AI Resurrection Era
Pip and I have talked about this quite a bit on our podcast… once it was announced that several previous (and very dead) characters would be coming back… how would they do it? Barring some severe retconning which would have pissed just about everyone off, there’s really only a couple of ways it could be done. Dreams? Memories? Old home movies?
Or what they chose to do…
They used AI to bring back legacy characters.
Yes – Matthew Lillard returns as Stu Macher.
And honestly? I loved it.
If you’re going to embrace franchise mythology in 2026, you might as well go full meta with it. Lillard’s presence — even digitally enhanced — feels like a love letter to fans who’ve kept the “Stu is alive” theories burning for nearly three decades.
He’s not alone. The film also uses AI to revive:
- Laurie Metcalf’s Nancy Loomis
- Scott Foley’s Roman Bridger
- David Arquette’s Dewey Riley
Was it surprising? Not really. Once they opened the Stu door, it made sense they’d walk through it with other former Ghostfaces and even a beloved victim.
Is it a little weird? Sure. But Scream has always thrived in the “commentary on the times” space. And in an era obsessed with digital resurrection and legacy IP, this feels almost inevitable.
And here’s one thing I actually really appreciated. While this film really leans into the ‘Stu Macher is in fact dead’ line of thinking… they don’t slam that door completely shut. Even though he’s not in this movie (other than via AI) he could still be out there just waiting to pop up in a future installment.
The Kills: Creative and Brutal
Let’s talk about what matters most in a Scream movie.
Some of the kills are GREAT. Innovative. Memorable.
The standout? A beer tap driven through a Lucas’ head — followed by foamy, blood-soaked beer pouring out of his mouth.
It’s grotesque. It’s ridiculous. It’s exactly the kind of over-the-top slasher spectacle that earns its place in franchise highlight reels.
The Reveal – Underwhelming and Too Predictable
Unfortunately, the killer reveal doesn’t hit as hard as it should.
The culprits:
- Ethan Embry as Marco, an employee at a mental institution
- Anna Camp as Jessica Bowden, Sidney’s neighbor and Lucas’s mother
The moment Ethan Embry appeared on screen, I had a feeling. That is, once I figured out who it was. I knew I knew him but it took me a few moments to place him.
I mean… how could Rusty Griswold / Nick Papagiorgio not be the killer?
There’s just something about him that screamed red herring-turned-actual-killer. And sure enough…
Couple that with Jessica’s rambling reasoning on why she wanted to kill Sidney. Meh.
The reveal itself feels underwhelming. Not offensively bad but close to it. This will turn a lot of people off but it shouldn’t. Up until then it was a great Scream entry and let’s face it… we’re really running out of characters that have any sort of tie to Sidney Prescott.
The Town Curfew Problem
There’s a plot device involving a town-wide curfew that becomes painfully convenient. They did it in the first movie as well. It was handled better there. Here it’s really apparent.
More than once I found myself asking: “Where the hell is everyone? Why are there no cops anywhere?”
The isolation feels manufactured rather than organic, and it undercuts the tension.
The Meeks-Martins (Mostly There)
Jasmin Savoy Brown (Mindy) and Mason Gooding (Chad) are present… technically.
They function more as franchise connective tissue and occasional comic relief than fully realized characters. It’s nice to see them, but they don’t get much to do beyond reminding us of Scream 5 and 6.
Oh… and of course they get stabbed… again. If there’s a record for characters that survive stabs when they shouldn’t, these two take the cake.
Scream 7 (2026) – Final Thoughts
I went into Scream 7 worried but optimistic.
It’s not as bad as it could have been — especially considering the behind-the-scenes turbulence — but it’s also not as strong as it might have been.
Still, it delivers enough:
- Solid Sidney focus
- Fun legacy callbacks
- A few standout kills
- That classic Ghostface energy
Is it top-tier Scream? No.
Is it a worthy addition that longtime fans will walk out of feeling mostly satisfied?
Absolutely.
And sometimes, in a franchise seven films deep…
Satisfying is enough. 🔪
