Neve Campbell's Return to Scream Films Is Too Much of a Good Thing

Summary:

• The Scream horror film franchise has been a hot commodity with its six films grossing $913 million worldwide, and a seventh movie is on the way.
• The latest Scream film is set to bring the franchise back to its roots, being helmed by the first film's scribe Kevin Williamson and marking the comeback of original series star Neve Campbell.
• Campbell’s return comes amid controversial news tied to the exit of the sequel’s former director and lead actress, getting a divided fan reaction.

The upcoming gorefest in the town of Woodsboro, California has gotten high-profile coverage thanks to a welcome update: Neve Campbell, the face of the classic Scream movies, is coming back.

Campbell, who portrayed protagonist Sydney Prescott, broke the news herself on Instagram, dropping the photo of the untitled Scream 7 Script which confirmed Kevin Williamson, the scriptwriter for part one, two, and four of the series, as the flick’s director.

The actress attached a caption to the post expressing optimistic remarks, as she noted that the chance to reconnect with the franchise was a long-awaited boon and that she was most pleased with Williamson’s part in the film, owing to his inspirational work and the two’s long-standing friendship.

Normally, this news would seem like fangasm material, given that Campbell’s absence from the franchise has been mourned ever since she left after the fifth series installment hit the theaters, citing a pay dispute.

However, Campbell and Williamson’s reunion seems to have been a coerced choice for the franchise’s creative team who had gotten into hot water after a series of highly-publicized departures from the project. This includes Melissa Barrera, who was set to be the final girl of Scream 7 but had to leave after an incident that sent some fans in uproar last November.

Barrera got under scrutiny after speaking out on the Israeli-Hamas conflict on social media, showing support for the Palestine cause due to it resonating with her personal experience growing up as a Mexican national.

This resulted in the filmmakers letting Barrera go, with her presumed co-star Jenna Ortega and original director Christopher Landon following suit.

This left the Scream 7 project rather empty-handed, with trade press saying that the franchise was poised for trouble, barring a return to form.

Now with Campbell and Williamson back at the spotlight, it seems like the studio is milking the nostalgia just to get back into good graces, which was not lost on fans.

“Kevin Williamson is directing Scream 7 starring Neve Campbell. I really want to just be excited for this but man, the path to this film has been so ugly and Melissa Barrera's treatment so shitty. I love this series so much and wanna be hyped but right now, lots of mixed emotions,” X user TheEricGoldman said.

Furthermore, progressive audiences have been treating Campbell’s reappearance as a dirty move, opining that her working under producers who show an anti-Palestine stance is a morally compromised decision.

This type of reaction has led to fan calls to boycott the film, with anti-hype posts floating around on various online community outlets.

With no announced release date in sight, we guess that it is soon to comment on how the franchise’s future will play out after the comebacks of Campbell and Williamson. Fingers crossed on this one.