Highlights
- Scream 7 should reinvent itself and move away from the meta aspect of the franchise for something fresh.
- Characters in Scream 7 shouldn’t rely on meta jokes or references to the horror genre to keep audiences engaged.
- Fans are excited for Scream 7 to take a new direction, honoring the franchise’s legacy without the need for more meta humor.
With so much up in the air when it comes to Scream 7‘s director and cast, it’s the perfect time for the slasher franchise to reinvent itself. Although the original horror movie in a franchise is often the best quality, that isn’t true of Scream. Each movie stands on its own while still being connected to final girl Sidney Prescott’s (Neve Campbell) tragic family story and tough personality, which is what makes audiences excited for each new film.
Although Scream is known for being a meta horror franchise and the characters reference the genre regularly, there are many compelling reasons why this doesn’t need to happen in Scream 7. Whether or not Scream 7 follows Sidney as she takes down Ghostface yet again or has an entirely new cast, there doesn’t need to be any meta jokes or pieces of dialogue.
Scream 7 Should Throw Away The Series Meta Aspect
Scream (2022) had plenty of smart meta quotes, such as Richie Kirsch (Jack Quaid) comparing the Ghostface killings to Michael Myers’s killing spree in Halloween. Scream 6 doesn’t have as many unforgettable quotes about the horror movie genre, if any, which is why Scream 7 should forget about including this aspect of the franchise. There are a few reasons for this. For one thing, since the seventh movie in horror franchises is often lackluster or terrible, there’s not much material to draw from. For another, Scream has made enough slasher movie jokes at this point, and audiences want something new and different.
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Scream IV Directors |
Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett |
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Writers |
James Vanderbilt, Guy Busick |
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Melissa Barrera, Jenna Oretega, Jasmin Savoy-Brown, Dermot Mulroney, Lianna Liberato, Henry Czerny, Mason Gooding, Courteney Cox, Hayden Panettiere |
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Release Date |
March 10th, 2023 (United States) |
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Runtime |
122 minutes |
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Rotten Tomatoes Score |
76% |
Since Scream 7 still needs a director and the cast hasn’t been officially announced yet, it’s the perfect time for the Scream franchise to start fresh and go in another direction. The movies have already delved into sequels, trilogies, reboots, and franchises. Nothing can top some of Scream‘s best moments, like when Sidney tells her cousin Jill Roberts (Emma Roberts) in the solid movie Scream 4:
“You forgot the first rule of remakes, Jill. Don’t f*ck with the original!”
This quote not only shows Sidney’s continual strength and perseverance in the face of wild odds and terrifying circumstances, but it’s a clever way to talk about the movie being a reboot. Scream has always been a smart and self-aware slasher franchise, and the cast and crew were aware that some wondered if a fourth film was necessary. By now, people are curious to see where Ghostface goes next, and there’s no need to make jokes about whether a seventh movie will be good.
Fans have ideas about Scream 7, and there are ways to honor the franchise’s legacy without diving into the meta aspect yet again. For example, in Scream 2, Randy Meeks (Jamie Kennedy) jokes about sequels, and nothing can top that. He says:
“The way I see it, someone’s out to make a sequel. You know, cash in on all the movie murder hoopla. So, it’s our job to observe the rules of the sequel. Number one: the body count is always bigger. Number two: the death scenes are always much more elaborate. Carnage candy. And number three: never, ever, under any circumstances, assume the killer is dead.”
Scream 6 Struggled To Make Its Meta Stakes Work
While there are many great meta horror movies, Scream 6 didn’t include horror references or meta quotes as seamlessly and naturally as the other movies in the horror franchise. Since there aren’t many hilarious jokes or clever statements about the sixth movie in a franchise, the characters often make random statements that don’t feel very memorable.
Mindy Meeks-Martin (Jasmin Savoy Brown) is the Scream 6 character who says most of the meta quotes. At the end of Scream 6, she says:
“Not every movie needs a post credits scene.”
Mindy also says:
“I got it wrong again. F*ck this franchise!”
These quotes aren’t particularly wise or funny, and they don’t match the intelligent nature of Randy’s brilliant speech in the original Scream about the rules of horror movie survival. Randy says that people should never be intimate, use substances or drink, and say that they’re about to return to the room. He explains:
“Number three: never, ever, ever under any circumstances say, “I’ll be right back.” Because you won’t be back… See, you push the laws and you end up dead. Okay, I’ll see you in the kitchen with a knife.”
Kevin Williamson once said that he regretted Randy’s death in Scream 2, and it was definitely sad to say goodbye to this famous character since he is responsible for so many of the franchise’s smart meta quotes. Since Randy is a film buff who has an obsessive knowledge of the genre, he’s the right person to explain what typically happens in horror movies and how everyone can make it out alive. While Scream 6 attempted to continue the legacy with Randy’s niece Mindy, it doesn’t feel the same.
Scream 7 Can Be A Reinvention
Scream 7 needs to reinvent the franchise and do something fresh. Whether a new final girl emerges from the legacy of Sidney, or Hayden Panettiere’s character Kirby Reed is given a weighty storyline, Scream 7 should forget the meta aspect and start a new phase of the franchise. If Scream is going to continue past the seventh movie, this would also give the franchise plenty of material to work with.
Scream fans are familiar with Randy Meeks’s horror movie rules, what being a final girl means, and the motivation behind each Ghostface killer. There’s no reason why Scream 7 can’t be a straightforward horror movie. Considering the smart, hilarious, and memorable tone of each Scream film, it will still be great.
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