Neve Campbell explains why she's ready to return to the Scream franchise

Scream 7 is currently in development and on track for a 2025 release. Kevin Williamson makes his franchise return, this time as director, with James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick set to write the script. But the most intriguing news for long-time fans of the film series is the addition of Neve Campbell, who plays the iconic final girl, Sidney Prescott.

Campbell's return is notable because she walked away from the horror franchise after appearing in Scream (2022) due to a pay disparity with production company Spyglass Media Group.

Previously, Campbell told People she felt that she was being undervalued and didn't believe "that if I were a man and had done five installments of a huge blockbuster franchise over 25 years that the number that I was offered would be the number that would be offered to a man."

As excited as fans might be to see Sidney back in a lead role in Scream 7, the news isn't without its controversy. Spyglass infamously fired star Melissa Barrera, who played Sam Carpenter in Scream and Scream 6.

Shortly after, Jenna Ortega also dropped out of filming for the seventh film, meaning that neither Carpenter sister is coming back for the seventh movie. It remains to be seen if the other two co-stars, Mason Gooding and Jasmin Savoy Brown (the other half of the "core four" playing Chad and Mindy Meeks-Martin), will return.

Since the controversy surrounding Barrera's firing, Spyglass reportedly reached out to Campbell with a much better offer, likely because without Barrera and Ortega, they now have more funds to get her back.

"When they first approached me [for Scream 7], I thought, ‘I don't know what respectful looks like to them. We might be in very different places.’ But they started out in a strong place, so that was lovely."

Campbell is also excited to work with Kevin Williamson again. He previously wrote the first, second, and fourth Scream movies and now steps up into the director's chair.

“I'm really excited that Kevin Williamson is going to direct,” says Campbell. "I think he's been wanting to do it for years and he deserves it. This is his baby. He's going to do a phenomenal job," said the Scream star.

Personally, I'm not really interested in Sidney's story anymore. I had grown attached to the Carpenter sisters and I don't necessarily want to see a Scream movie without them, especially as Sam's arc wasn't completed. I'm even less enthused by some of the rumors circulating that Spyglass wants to retcon Scream 5 and Scream 6 and pretend they were part of a fictional book written by Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox).

But I'm sure Scream purists are happy with the news of Campbell and Williamson's return to the franchise. Cox is also reportedly in talks to return for the seventh movie.

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