Sidney’s back, but the script is a bit of a mess. Despite a weak reveal, Scream 7 delivers brutal kills and a meta-return fans will die for.
I went into Scream 7 with very low expectations, but I wanted to love it. I am a massive fan of this franchise, but between the production hurdles and the shifting cast, I wasn’t sure what this film was going to bring. But seeing Neve Campbell back as Sidney Prescott – not just as a legacy cameo, but at the heart of the story – reminded me why I fell in love with Woodsboro in the first place.
As the characters explicitly explain to us (as they always do), every Ghostface era has a theme. This time? Nostalgia. In a Hollywood landscape obsessed with requels and legacy sequels, Scream 7 leans hard into the ghosts of the past.
The biggest ghost, of course, is the return of Matthew Lillard as Stu Macher. I’ll keep this spoiler-free, but I will say this: Lillard is clearly having the time of his life. He brings an unhinged, kinetic energy that serves as a bridge to the 1996 original. His performance is so electric that you don’t care how he got there. He reminds us that while the masks stay the same, the man behind them is what makes the skin crawl.
If I’m being honest, the script feels like it went through the ringer. You can tell it was pieced together through various iterations, and as a result, the character development for the supporting cast is thin. However, it feels like the filmmakers knew the plot was a bit shaky and decided to compensate by upping the gore.
The majority of the kills in Scream 7 are some of the most brutal in the entire franchise. They are mean, inventive, and absolutely bonkers.
As for the opening segment? Well, it delivers, that’s for sure. Even though we’ve been trained to know exactly how these openings end, the execution here was so fresh and high-stakes that it set a frantic pace for the rest of the film. It’s a fun, bloody segue that proves Ghostface hasn’t lost his touch.
What saved this movie for me – and what made it resonate on a personal level – was the relationship between Sidney and her daughter, Tatum (played by a fantastic Isabel May). As a parent of two girls myself, I am always a sucker for a mother-daughter story.
Seeing Sidney move from the Final Girl to Protector Mother adds a beautiful layer to her arc. She isn’t just fighting for her own survival anymore; she’s fighting to stop the generational trauma from consuming her child. Isabel May holds her own against a legend like Campbell, giving us a character we actually care about instead of just another body for the count.
Is it perfect? No. In fact, it’s probably one of the weaker entries in terms of narrative cohesion. The reveal is unfortunately predictable, and the motives this time around feel a bit thin compared to the high-concept killers of the past.
That said, Scream 7 succeeds where it counts. It delivers the meta-commentary I crave, the brutal kills I expect, and a heavy dose of nostalgia that feels earned rather than cheap. It’s a bloody, flawed, but heartfelt homecoming for Sidney Prescott.
About Scream 7
When a new Ghostface killer emerges in the quiet town where Sidney has built a new life, her darkest fears are realized as her daughter becomes the next target. Determined to protect her family, she must face the horrors of her past to put an end to the bloodshed once and for all.
Scream 7 is now playing in theaters.