Scream OG Says Franchise Is In ‘Good Place’ But Has Gotten ‘Too Violent’

​​Scream has changed with the franchise becoming more brutal, according to one of the original cast members. However, the actor believed that fans could expect more films because Scream is in a “good place.”

The Scream franchise was created by Kevin Williamson and directed primarily by Wes Craven. The horror-slasher with dark humor has been successful in pop culture, with the first movie, Scream, released in 1996. It has since spawned several sequels — Scream 2 (1997), Scream 3 (2000), Scream 4 (2011), Scream (2022), also known as Scream 5, and Scream VI (2023). Scream 7 is coming out in 2026. The original cast members include Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott, Courteney Cox as Gale Weathers, David Arquette (Deputy Dewey Riley), Skeet Ulrich as Billy Loomis, Matthew Lillard as Stu Macher, Rose McGowan as Tatum Riley and Drew Barrymore as Casey Becker. One of them recently shared their thoughts about the franchise.

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Lillard, who has been part of the franchise, was asked about its state. The actor who had an uncredited cameo in Scream 2, whose sound archive was heard in Scream 3, and who paid Campbell’s Sidney a visit in Scream 4, was confident that Scream was doing well. “I think it’s in a good place,” Lillard told GamesRadar. “I think that [the movie being] back in the hands of Kevin Williams is great. I love what [Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin] were doing before. Nothing against them. In fact, I thought they were taking a really exciting way.”

However, Lillard noticed some changes in the franchise in terms of violence. He found the recent films more savage. “I thought the movie got too violent,” Lillard continued. ” I think 6 was, like… I don’t think Ghostface ever needs a shotgun. I think that the movies are – everything is trying to repeat what we did in the first movie in a lot of ways. Like, a maniacal monologue at the end. It’s really hard to do. I hope that Kevin takes it in a brand new, brave, and exciting direction so that we can sort of find different colors and different joys.” In one scene of Scream 6, Ghostface, the knife-wielding killer, used an unconventional weapon — a shotgun. It received an intense backlash, but directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett doubled down on their decision. According to them, they didn’t want the movie to be “safe and boring.” Instead, they wanted it to be “fun and to raise eyebrows.”

Scream has been around for nearly three decades already, so it’s not surprising to see some changes. For instance, the original movie was set in the fictional small town of Woodsboro, but the recent one was set in populated but isolated urban spaces in New York City. The original movie was also humorous and leaned more toward the satirical tone, but Scream 6 was less comedic and more on suspense and shocker. Lillard was also right about the recent one being more violent with the introduction of the shotgun.

The use of a gun could work once, but repeated use of the said weapon would not give the same feeling. Ghostface usually uses the Buck 120 hunting knife to kill or harm the victims. According to theories, it is the weapon of choice because Ghostface has a personal grudge and wants to feel visceral. Also, using guns would only degrade the anticipated moments in the films, but sticking with the knife remains true to the franchise being a slasher.

Scream 7 will hit theaters on February 27, 2026.

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Source: GamesRadar