How Scream 7 Slashes and Misses

Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

After a rough few years of getting Scream 7 made, Scream 7 has finally come out, directed by Kevin Williamson and starring Neve Campbell, Isabel May, Courtney Cox, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Mason Gooding, Joel McHale, and Matthew Lillard. Ghostface has returned and found Sidney Prescott, now Sidney Evans, and her family, targeting Sidney’s daughter, Tatum. Williamson previously wrote Scream, Scream 2, and Scream 4. Scream 7 went through an unusual and controversial production.

Back in November 2023, Melissa Barrera was fired after her comments on the Israel-Palestine conflict, and Jenna Ortega left the project. The original director, Christopher Landon, left the project and received threats despite not being involved in Barrera’s firing. Fans upset with Barrera’s firing were calling for boycotts of Scream 7. They had rewritten Scream 7 and decided to focus on Sidney, bringing Neve Campbell back after she chose not to return for Scream VI due to a pay disagreement, as well as having Williamson direct the movie.

Scream 7 is a mixed bag of a Scream movie. It has moments that Scream fans will love and are some of the best in the Scream series, but it also has moments Scream fans will dislike and are some of the worst in the Scream series. The opening kill is one of the best openings in a Scream movie, building up the plot of whether or not Stu Macher, one of the original Ghostfaces, is still alive by taking place in his old house that is now a Ghostface/Stab-themed Airbnb. It feels longer than the usual openings.

The best part about Scream 7 is Neve Campbell as Sidney. Seeing her return as one of the most iconic final girls in a new stage of her life, motherhood, was interesting. She named her oldest daughter after her best friend, Tatum, who was killed in the original Scream. It’s nice this movie also gives a nice tribute to Tatum’s character and what she meant to Sidney. Sidney’s married to a police officer named Mark Evans and owns a coffee shop. There is tension between her and Tatum because Sidney is overprotective and hesitant to share her past with Tatum. It shows Sidney that, despite building this new life, does what she can to protect her family. Neve never loses a step as Sidney and shows why she is one of the best.

Her husband, Mark Evans, played by Joel McHale, is an officer who tries to protect his family. McHale has good chemistry with Neve Campbell and is one of the few new characters that works well in this movie. Isabel May as Tatum Evans starts as wooden, but her performance improves throughout the movie. Courtney Cox is once again amazing as Gale Weathers, but is underutilized in this movie. She’s in a good chunk of the second act, but then disappears for most of the third act. The same thing happens to Mason Gooding and Jasmin Savoy Brown as Chad and Mindy Meeks-Martin. They are the only two members of the Core 4 from Scream (2022) and Scream IV that return and now work with Gale Weathers. They appear for a good chunk but then don’t appear for most of the third act. I get that the focus is on Sidney’s family, but they could have done more with these other characters.

The big gimmick of Scream 7 is Matthew Lillard returning as Stu Macher. Stu has been a fan-favorite character since he appeared in the first Scream movie. There have been theories of whether or not Stu is still alive, and Kevin Williamson himself wanted to bring Stu back for his original Scream 3 screenplay before he left that movie and changes were made. There have been other theories on whether or not Stu will be an AI character or only appear in flashbacks and nightmare sequences. You will have to see the movie to see how Stu is used. When Lillard is on screen as Stu, he still has it 30 years later. He’s not in the movie as much, and the way he is used will likely divide fans based on what those fans expected. Personally, I was fine with how Stu was used, and it seemed like the most realistic approach to bringing his character into the fold.

Besides Mark and Tatum Evans, most of the new characters are basically just victims for Ghostface to kill off. Tatum’s friend circle has no development, and the movie wouldn’t have felt all that different if they weren’t in it. The only two who have any significance are Asa Germann’s character, Lucas, who is obsessed with true crime, and Sam Rechner as Ben, Tatum’s boyfriend, but mostly because they are seen as likely suspects behind the new Ghostface killings.

Then there is the Ghostface reveal. Scream VI had the worst Ghostface reveal, with Scream 2 revealing Billy Loomis’s mom as the other Ghostface being the next worst. Scream 7 tops them with the worst reveal yet. The suspects feel forced in with the worst and sloppiest motivations in the entire Scream series. The third act alone is the worst third act in a Scream movie. Everything feels rushed from the reveal to the final confrontation with the killers. It feels like the first two acts go smoothly with some flaws, but still fine, and the third act is sloppily put together.

This is probably up there with Scream 3 as the worst Scream movie in the series. Does that make Scream 7 terrible? No, as the movie delivers on Sidney Evans, her family, the Ghostface killings, Stu’s presence when he appears, the character moments, dark tone, and nostalgic stuff. Like Scream 3, Scream 7 is still better than a lot of other slasher sequels from other franchises. Williamson should have just returned as a writer, and they should have gotten a more experienced director. They also shouldn’t have rushed this movie after all the chaos before it in changing the story and cast.

Overall, Scream 7 has enjoyable moments, and it’s great to have Sidney back, but it also has weak moments and could have been a lot better. The killer reveals were bad, and the third act was a disappointment. It still has those classic Scream themes fans will enjoy, but if Paramount wants this franchise to keep going, they need to improve the writing and improve on the flaws of this movie. If you’re a Scream fan, I do recommend you check this one out.

My final overall grade for Scream 7 is a C+. Hopefully, they keep Williamson on the creative team but get a better direction for the next Scream movie.

What are your thoughts on Scream 7? Let us know in the comments below.