Scream 6 Almost Had to Cut Its Best Scene

Scream VI is already in theaters, and it's making a killing at the box office, no pun intended. Fans are coming out in droves to see the sixth film in the Scream franchise, which some critics are even calling the best sequel they've ever released. Jenna Ortega (Wednesday) serves as the lead in the new film after contract negotiations with Neve Campbell fell through and she opted not to return as Sidney Prescott. Scream VI moves the location of the franchise to New York City and even features a crazy subway sequence that some would say is the highlight of the movie. But it turns out that the subway sequence was almost cut from the film's final edit. In a new interview with CBR, Scream VI co-director Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and executive producer Chad Villella reveal that the subway scene was almost cut.

"The challenges of getting that on screen started in pre-production when we learned that we had no idea how we were going to do this in terms of getting a subway car. In the back of our heads, we thought, 'We'll get a subway and retrofit it and make it look right.' Then, we found out that was off the table. We tried to get a couple in, but they were too heavy and were tipping. It would have cost a billion dollars. We had so many conversations about it. Thirty percent of pre-production was like, 'How are we doing this subway sequence?'  Bettinelli-Olpin revealed to which executive producer Villella replied, "Weren't there multiple moments where we were like, "Maybe we should just cut it?" Then, we were like, 'Absolutely, under no f----ng circumstances.'"

"This was a testament to how great everyone on the crew was. Everybody worked together to figure it out, 'How can we get this? How can we build it? How can we create something that feels like it is moving?" This is a handshake between every department, including costumes. 'Oh, we have to make 200 different costumes? They can't all look professional?' It's a long way of saying it was a handshake between every department, and they all exceeded our expectations. I remember when we got on set, the reaction was. 'This is just the subway. I feel like we are in New York,' which is exactly what you want. It didn't feel like a set. It felt like you were there." Bettinelli-Olpin added.

The new Scream will see the return of the fifth movie's newcomers Ortega (Tara), Melissa Barrera (Sam), Jasmin Savoy Brown (Mindy), and Mason Gooding (Chad) as well as Scream 4's Hayden Panettiere (Kirby) and first-timers Dermot Mulroney and Tony Revolori. The film will also feature longtime franchise star Courteney Cox as Gale Weathers. Sadly, Campbell won't be returning to the Scream franchise for the first time since it began in 1996. It's been reported that Campbell will not be returning as Sidney Prescott due to a pay disagreement. In August, Campbell spoke with PEOPLE and opened up about the discrepancy in pay equality. 

"I did not feel that what I was being offered equated to the value that I bring to this franchise, and have brought to this franchise, for 25 years," Campbell told the magazine. "And as a woman in this business, I think it's really important for us to be valued and to fight to be valued." She added, "I honestly don'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. And in my soul, I just couldn't do that. I couldn't walk on set feeling that — feeling undervalued and feeling the unfairness, or lack of fairness, around that."

Does Scream VI Have a Time Jump?

Barrera recently spoke to the 20 Questions On Deadline podcast (via ScreenRant) and revealed when the sixth movie takes place.

"No, it's not [a big time jump] at all. It's almost directly after the last one. Basically, the amount of time that has passed between one movie and the other is the amount of time that has passed in Scream time," Barrera explained. The new movie is also leaving Woodsboro and heading to New York, which Barrera recently called a "more mortifying" setting.

Scream VI is in theaters now!

What did you think about Scream VI? What do you think about all of the cameos in Scream VI? Let us know in the comments below or by hitting up our writer @NateBrail on Twitter!