Everything We Know About Scream 7 (Including Who Will Return)

Hello again, Sidney. After Neve Campbell’s Sidney Prescott sat out 2023’s Scream VI — the first film in the nearly 30-year-old franchise not to feature Ghostface’s first obsession before the Carpenter sisters, played by Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega — the original Scream queen is back in Scream 7. Also returning for the upcoming seventh installment in the meta-slasher saga: Courteney Cox and series creator Kevin Williamson, in addition to some familiar and fresh (ghost)faces. With filming now officially underway on the sequel, we’re taking a stab at everything we know about Scream 7 so far, including who’s returning (and who isn’t) to who’s directing, writing, and more.

Who’s in the Scream 7 Cast?

Campbell and Cox are returning as repeat Ghostface survivors Sidney Prescott and Gale Weathers, respectively, reunited for the first time since Dewey’s (David Arquette) death in 2022’s Scream 5. (While Cox’s fame-seeking reporter turned The Woodsboro Murders author returned for Scream VI, Campbell declined to return for the sixth movie due to a salary dispute.)

“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, for25 years,” Campbell told People in 2022. “As a woman in this business, I think it’s really important for us to be valued and to fight to be valued.”

Gale gave an update on the off-screen Sidney and her husband Mark (Scream 3‘s Patrick Dempsey) in that film, explaining that she was “taking Mark and the kids somewhere safe” in response to new Ghostface killings in New York before adding that the long-terrorized Sidney “deserves to have a happy ending.” But this is the sixth sequel in a long-running slasher franchise, so Sidney’s “happy ending” won’t last long. Isabel May, who starred in the Yellowstone spinoffs 1883 and 1923, has been cast as Sidney’s daughter, and Dempsey has confirmed he has engaged in talks about reprising his role as Mark Kincaid for the first time since 2000’s Scream 3. (Studio Spyglass Entertainment has yet to announce Dempsey’s casting.)

Mckenna Grace (Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire), Celeste O’Connor (Madame Web), Asa Germann (Gen V), Sam Rechner (Heartbreak High), and Anna Camp (Pitch Perfect) have been cast in undisclosed roles. Meanwhile, the “Core Four” is four no more: Mason Gooding, who played Chad in the last two Scream movies, is the only member of the group to return in Scream 7.

Roger L. Jackson, who has voiced Ghostface in every installment since the 1996 original, also answered the call to return alongside Campbell and Cox. Barrera’s Sam Carpenter — the daughter of Sidney’s ex and the original Ghostface, serial killer Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich) — and half-sister Tara (Ortega) will not appear in Scream 7, nor will Chad’s twin sister, Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown).

In November 2023, Barrera was dropped from the franchise by Spyglass Media Group after her posts about the Israel-Hamas war on social media. That same month, it was reported Ortega also would not return, reportedly due to scheduling conflicts with her hit Netflix series Wednesday. It was later reported that Ortega departed over an alleged pay dispute.

Who wrote and directed Scream 7?

Series creator Kevin Williamson — who wrote the Wes Craven-directed Scream, Scream 2, and Scream 4 — is the director, replacing Scream 5 and VI filmmakers Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (a.k.a. Radio Silence), who are credited as executive producers. The duo stepped back from directing a third movie to helm the vampire horror-comedy Abigail, so Spyglass tapped Happy Death Day and Freaky filmmaker Christopher Landon to take the reins. However, in December 2023, Landon announced that he “formally exited” the sequel weeks before his dropping out was reported in the press.

“It was a dream job that turned into a nightmare. And my heart did break for everyone involved. Everyone,” Landon wrote on social media after previously clarifying that Barrera’s controversial dismissal from the Scream franchise was “not my decision to make.”

“But it’s time to move on,” Landon added in the post. “I have nothing more to add to the conversation other than I hope Wes’ [Craven’s] legacy thrives and lifts above the din of a divided world. What he and Kevin created is something amazing and I was honored to have even the briefest moment basking in their glow.”

It was reported that Scream 5 and VI screenwriter James Vanderbilt had structured his script for the seventh movie on Barrera’s character, Sam, and was forced to return to the drawing board. Spyglass then tapped Guy Busick, Vanderbilt’s co-writer on the previous two films, to rewrite; he’s credited with the screenplay, while Vanderbilt receives a co-story credit. Busick’s credits include Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett’s Ready or Not and Abigail, and the upcoming Final Destination: Bloodlines. Williamson’s sole credit as director is the 1999 teen comedy-thriller Teaching Mrs. Tingle.

Williamson shared, “It’s been nearly 30 years since my very first script, Scream, was directed by the legendary Wes Craven. I never would have predicted what it would become. Or that I would be directing the seventh installment of the franchise. I am overcome with gratitude and excitement, and I can’t wait to take this journey with Neve and the entire Scream family as we bring back Sidney Prescott in the next chapter of the Scream franchise.”

“It’s always been such a blast and an honor to get to play Sidney in the Scream movies,” Campbell said when announcing her return on social media. “My appreciation for these films and for what they have meant to me, has never waned. I’m very happy and proud to say I’ve been asked, in the most respectful way, to bring Sidney back to the screen and I couldn’t be more thrilled.”

Campbell continued, “Well, actually, I could. While I’ve been so incredibly lucky to make these films with both the master of horror Wes Craven and the wonderfully talented Matt and Tyler team, I’ve dreamt for many years of how amazing it would be to make one of these movies with Kevin Williamson at the helm. And now it’s happening, Kevin Williamson is going to direct Scream 7! This was his baby and it’s his brilliant mind that dreamt up this world. Kevin is not just an inspiration as an artist but has been a dear friend for many years. To the amazing Scream fans, I hope you are as excited as I am.”

What is Scream 7 about?

Plot details are being kept under wraps, but Campbell confirmed that the new movie would follow Sidney — and, as we now know, her family — after shifting focus to the Carpenter sisters in the 2022 legacy sequel Scream and 2023’s Scream 6.

“We are going to follow Sidney,” Campbell told Entertainment Tonight, comparing the story to the recent Halloween sequels trilogy that brought back Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode 40 years after the 1978 original. “They did pitch the concept to me, and it’s the reason that I jumped on board. I love these movies, they are so much fun to be a part of. I’m so grateful for them, I could never have imagined being a part of a movie that would have lasted this many decades.”

“The fandom is nuts, they are incredible and very passionate about these films,” she added. “I’m excited to give them a new one.”

What is the Scream 7 release date?

Paramount Pictures has dated Scream 7 for Feb. 27, 2026, three years after the last installment slashed its way to $169 million at the box office in March 2023. Spyglass once hoped to have the new movie out in 2025 before its creative retooling and delays due to the 2023 Hollywood strikes.

Williamson announced on Jan. 7, 2025, that filming had begun on Scream 7. Production was initially expected to get underway in September 2024 before being pushed back to December of last year and again to January — and now cameras are rolling in metro Atlanta, Georgia, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

“I’m very, very happy it’s happening,” Campbell recently told IndieWire of Scream 7. “We were supposed to start in September, but we’re going to start in December now because of some scheduling stuff with Kevin and myself and having that all aligned. And actually, I think it’s a good thing, because we’re going to be able to have the time to get it really right. So I’m very excited about it.”

“What an extraordinary day I had working with an amazing and talented cast and crew. They brought their ‘A’ game and had my back every step of the way,” Williamson wrote in his Jan. 7 post on Instagram. “I’m so very grateful for this opportunity and to Wes Craven who was on my mind through it all. The profound impact he has had on my life and career is endless.”