Scream fans around the globe are gearing up for the upcoming 5th film in the franchise, due to hit theaters in January 2022. The movie has an all-star lineup with returning favorites and new faces that will square up against one of the most infamous slashers in horror history—Ghostface.
Ghostface is scary, always lurking, and a little clumsy, which is part of what makes the killer unique. There’s an almost laughable element to some of Ghostface’s kills in the original Scream film. In large, that’s due to the actors who portrayed him.
In a recent interview with Bloody Disgusting, Skeet Ulrich and Matthew Lillard discussed everything from the antics of Ghostface to the legacy of the film and if their characters could somehow have survived all those years ago.
Urlich discussed Lillard being clumsy and said that Wes used his uncoordinated nature to impact Stu’s version of Ghostface.
“Wes would watch Matt walk, and he’d typically bump into shit and fall down randomly. It led him to make Ghostface a little more clumsy. You could tell which people Stu killed.”
Lillard discussed Craven and how the experience creating Scream was so humbling and that it brought them so much joy, even if people didn’t truly give the cast and crew a chance. It wasn’t a hot breakout sensational film; at least, people didn’t think it would be at first.
“I don’t think anyone gave Scream a lot of credence. I mean, I don’t think anyone gave us a chance because we were coming in with a director that wasn’t necessarily young and hot. And we were coming with two television actors. And I think that we had a version of him that was humbled and happy to be there. I think that the cast, we all had an experience within that. Because we were all young, and we were all cohesive. We were like this little family for two months.”
He went on to say that he believed Craven loved the experience for exactly what it was. It wasn’t a situation where they felt a lot of pressure; it was a place where they could have fun and create something that ended up being a horror staple. At the time, that’s not what the plan was—they just enjoyed the ride.
Of course, things change when you do create something so wonderful, and they could tell Craven felt pressure towards the end.
“I think that Craven loved that. I believe that he enjoyed that. There was no pressure on that movie to be something special. It ended up being something iconic, but at the moment, there wasn’t the pressure. I think the other three movies, certainly four now, must’ve felt it during the production, which is interesting. Right? I mean, he went from sort of this carefree moment to, by the end, I think he was miserable. I don’t think it was a secret. He was really miserable by the time he did four, in terms of the pressure to produce an iconic film.”
Ulrich shared his thoughts on the film’s legacy and how many fans are still close to the movie. He said things change so much it’s hard to gauge if something will stay “popular” but that he can see it within pop culture and at conventions where people share what the film really meant to them.
Of course, Bloody Disgusting asked what all fans really want to know the answer to. In horror, rules are frequently broken where death is concerned, so could we see a Billy Loomis or Stu Macher revival in Scream‘s future? The actors say they’re both on board.
It certainly shows that while Scream means a lot to fans, it also means the world to those involved. No one would be disappointed to see Billy and Stu back in Woodsboro in the future. To celebrate Scream’s 25th anniversary, select theaters are showcasing the film on the 10th and 11th of this month, and the DVD is getting a Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD SteelBook which hits stores on October 19th, 2021.
You can see Scream in theaters on January 14, 2022, and we’re crossing our fingers for a trailer release soon.