Several crew members may have tested positive for COVID-19, but shooting continues at pace on Scream 5, which finally convinced Neve Campbell to sign on the dotted line to reprise the role of Sidney Prescott, reuniting her with co-stars Courtney Cox and David Arquette. While the news may have hardly come as a surprise after Arquette was giving it the hard sell in almost every interview that he did, directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett will still be relieved that the script won’t need the massive overhaul it would have required had she declined the offer.
Compared to most other long-running horror franchises, Scream has remained remarkably consistent over the last quarter of a century, although none of the three sequels to date have come close to matching the post-modern subversions of the genre that characterized Wes Craven’s classic 1996 original. However, new addition Kyle Gallner is claiming that if you’re a fan of the first movie, then you’re going to love Scream 5.
“I’m the first one to be like, ‘Eh, ya know’, No, no, no. What I found really, really cool about the script is there’s a lot of that kind of magic that the first one had, which is really cool. I think the people who love the original are gonna really dig this. I have a lot of faith in Tyler because I love Ready or Not and I’ve known Tyler for many years, and I know it’s gonna be good, so I’m excited.”
Gallner is hardly a stranger to horror having appeared in The Haunting of Connecticut, Jennifer’s Body, the Nightmare on Elm Street remake and Red State, so he certainly knows a thing or two about what makes these movies tick. The filmmakers have also already proven they know how to put a fresh spin on familiar tropes thanks to the fantastic Ready or Not, so Scream 5 looks to be in good hands all things considered.
Ghostface is set to return to our screens in January 2022, which gives the cast and crew plenty of time to create a worthy successor to Craven’s postmodern all-timer, and based on the talent involved, Scream 5 is poised to become a worthwhile entry into the enduringly popular series.