Scream writer says Neve Campbell should return to the franchise and get paid better

One of the key figures in horror cinema is the Final Girl, that woman who survives everything to finally face the monster and regain her autonomy. In the history of the genre we have great names and one of the most special is Sidney Prescott, who appeared for the first time in Scream: Scream Before You Die – 78% played by Neve Campbell. The actress remained a constant in the franchise until Scream 6 – 81%, a production that was abandoned due to a salary issue that the saga’s scriptwriter himself hopes will be resolved to bring it back in the next installment.

Keep reading: Neve Campbell criticizes the pay gap of Scream 6: “They would have offered me more if I had been a man”

Scream reinvented the slasher

Making horror is not easy at all, as ideas can run out quickly since there is a limited way to scare the public. The key is in the way these scenes are approached and used and not so much in the blood, guts or occasional scares. For all this, it is not uncommon for films in the genre to feel repetitive very quickly, especially if a useful formula is found that is worth exploiting for a while. However, these types of trends and limitations always make the arrival of something special even more important.

Wes Craven had already changed the world of horror with Nightmare on Hell Street – 94% and in 1996 he completely reinvented the slasher with the release of Scream: Scream Before You Die. To begin with, the film was released in December, out of season, and used many references to other classic films to send a very interesting and meta message about the genre’s fandom. More importantly, its protagonist greatly evolved the figure of the final girl by breaking several traditions that dictated these women.

Thus, Neve Campbell She became the center of the franchise alongside Courteney Cox and David Arquette, although she always had a privileged place due to her legacy within the genre. In 2011, Craven dared to return to the saga to release Scream 4 – 58%, which again played with the patterns of these films and, on this occasion, also with the very creation of a final girl and classic heroine. Although it was not highly appreciated at the time, this installment has little by little been reevaluated by fans and many consider it the second best of all.

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The rule was that the franchise should always have the cast and have Craven as director, so when he died it was thought that they would not continue with more proposals. Fans definitely underestimated the ambition of the production company that decided to revive the saga with Scream – 78%, where fans’ nostalgia was taken advantage of by turning to original talent while introducing a new generation with Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega. Since the proposal worked well, it was decided to move forward, but an important tradition was broken when Campbell was denied a raise and she decided to abandon the project for the next installment.

Kevin Williamson wants Neve Campbell back

Kevin Williamson wrote the first installment of the franchise and knows the details of its story and characters very well, so he did not approve of the production company letting its most important final girl go as if nothing had happened. During a podcast appearance Happy Horror Time (via Deadline), the screenwriter spoke about the actress’s firm decision not to return until she had a better salary:

I know her well. I love her and adore her, and that’s what he made of her and it was great for her. I love everyone involved in Scream and all I can say is pay them the money. Yes, everyone heard it. That’s what I would do. I would give him that. One day they will realize all that.

The franchise will continue with Scream 7 although it was announced some time ago that directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, aka Radio Silence, they would leave production to develop a film about one of Universal’s classic monsters. In this way, the creators will leave the story to their colleague and friend Christopher Landon, best known for Happy Death Day – 69% and Freaky: This Body Is To Kill – 90% At the moment it is not known if the producers have plans to negotiate a new contract with Neve Campbellbut everyone involved in these films hopes that it will be so to bring it back.

Don’t leave without reading: Behind the mask | A symbol of identity and alter ego in film and television.