As someone who enjoys the SCREAM movies and the franchise, I would say I am a fan of the franchise but I’m not a die-hard fan. I’ve seen the original a handful of times, and the subsequent sequels probably twice each, but that is about it, so I am not die-hard or heavily invested in the franchise and characters as much as some of the fandom. However, without getting political as well, I do not agree or condone what happened leading towards the events of Scream 7 from a production and cast standpoint, and that is where the politics and stance on what happened off camera and behind the scenes end. At the end of the day, it is a movie that is not trying to be anything more than that and deliver a franchise entry that will excite and entice fans; it does that – rather well and the future of the franchise if the seeds planted are in fact enacted on is going to be incredibly interesting and going to potentially annoy a lot of people, so the question has to be asked, what’s your favourite scary movie?
The movie opens up on a random couple (Michelle Randolph and Jimmy Tatro) as the old Macher (Matthew Lillard) house is now on Airbnb as a tourist destination for a murder house. Inside the house, there are tape outlines, Stab posters, and a billion placards with where the murders happened from both Scream and Scream 5. It is a creepy destination, but oddly realistic for something to happen, and of course, because it’s the original house that started it all – this oddly couple cannot possibly be alone, and thus our Ghostface (???) makes their presence known and claims their first two victims. Move over Woodsboro, Sidney Prescott-Evans (Neve Campbell) is no longer living there, and has relocated herself elsewhere to make a new life – but is that going to stop this new Ghostface from trying to find her? He was last in New York trying to get to Sid, now he’s found her in her new home with her new family, with Mark (Joel McHale) and their daughter Tatum (Isabel May), as she has to try and stop Ghostface, and anyone else who wants to don the mask, from hurting her or her family.
While it’s not just Sidney on this journey alone anymore, after herself Mark and Tatum are attacked, Gale (Courtney Cox) along with Mindy and Chad (Jasmin Savoy Brown and Mason Gooding respectfully) mysteriously show up and Sid finally decides to let someone help her, as she takes on Gale to help her finally put an end to all of this horror. However, Gale, Chad and Mindy being the characters they are, everyone is a suspect for who can be Ghostface this time around, everyone from Sid’s friend and neighbour Jessica (Anna Camp), her incredibly creepy son Lucas (Asa Germann), Celese (Chloe Parker) – Tatum’s friend, or Tatum’s boyfriend Sam (Ben Brown), everyone is a suspect.
What changes in the script written by Guy Busick and Kevin Williamson are most notable here is that a lot of the meta commentary is gone this time around, and the film firmly wants to heavily lean into the relationship between Gale and Sidney, this time around which is a refreshing moment and something that has been wanting to be explored more for 30 years. The biggest gripe with the movie is when we get the Ghostface reveal – the logic is not entirely there – there can be a case made for why the Ghostface killer decided to don the mask and become Ghostface, but it’s a little weaker as a reason from other reveals, however, it’s far from the worst reasoning the franchise has seen thus far.
Scream and especially Scream 7 lives and dies with its cast, and Neve Campbell and Courtney Cox being the limelight and centre of attention throughout the installment is the strongest element as they’re both completely and undeniably on top of their game and deliver the best performances out of either of them from the franchise. The true standout, though, is newcomer (to the franchise) Isabel May whose an absolute standout and holds her own ground. With having large shoes to fill as the daughter of Sidney Prescott, she brings a new life to the character of the presumable and inevitable final girl, as the franchise does have to eventually move on from Sidney and Neve, so Isabel is a perfect choice and proves she is perfect for the role with her performance in Scream 7.
Scream 7 had a lot of adversity and issues to overcome, with behind-the-scenes troubles and a complete overhaul of the cast, yet if you think of Scream 5 and Scream 6 as more spinoffs than parts of the franchise, Scream 7 is the Scream 5 we always should have had. While there is no disrespect or shade to Scream 5 and 6, as they are very good movies and entertaining beyond belief, leaving behind what made Scream, Scream was always a bold choice. Returning to its roots and acknowledging the characters that brought this franchise to life works, and despite the way we got here, Scream 7 proves to be a strong entry into a franchise that returned to its roots.
