Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) has made a new life for herself away from Woodsboro following the many Ghostface killers that have tried to kill her over the last 30 years. Married – she’s now known as Sidney Evans – to police chief Mark (Joel McHale) and the mother of children, including teenager Tatum (Isabel May), Sidney is lured back into another battle when a new Ghostface appears and targets her family. Questioning events from the past, Sidney battles to unmask the latest Ghostface and put an end to the cycle, once and for all.
‘Scream 7' follows on from 2024’s ‘Scream VI' and it marks the return of the franchise’s original heroine Sidney Prescott. Absent from the last film, due to a dispute over pay, Campbell reprises her most famous role as Sidney is thrust front-and-centre. This seventh instalment is the first to be directed by ‘Scream’ writer Kevin Williamson, and if the marketing is to be believed, the new film will take fans back to the roots of the franchise.
Campbell isn’t the only franchise vet reprising her role. Courteney Cox, the only star to have appeared in all of the films to date, is back as cut-throat reporter Gale Weathers while Mason Gooding and Jasmin Savoy Brown return as Chad and Mindy Meeks respectively, providing some continuation to the storyline that started in 2022’s ‘Scream' and 2024’s ‘Scream VI'. Of course, there is a whole new cast of young beautiful people for Ghostface to target, and as with previous instalments, every character is a suspect so the viewer is invited to sleuth along with the characters.
We’ve been asked to keep our review spoiler free so we’re not going to be able to go too far into specifics. What we can say is that the opening might be the series’ most meta to date, inspired by the Macher House being used in real life as an Air BnB. After the tense and fast-paced opening, which pays homage to plenty of classic moments from the franchise, we’re over to Sidney and her family, who are enjoying a quiet life away from the threat of Ghostface. As this is a ‘Scream’ film, it doesn’t take long for Sidney’s life to fall apart and ‘Scream 7' hurtles along at a relentless pace.
The film is packed with thrilling chase sequences, plenty of gory and inventive deaths, and perhaps the most screentime Ghostface has had in the entire franchise. The use of Ghostface in this film is incredibly effective, with the iconic character often appearing subtly, which makes things all the creepier. The script is as sharp as ever, with plenty of jokes eliciting laughs from the audience and plenty of references to pop culture. There’s more of an emotional heart as fans get to see what Sidney is like as a mother, and how her relationship with her daughter is fractured due to her past trauma. These are some of the film’s strongest elements. ‘Scream 7' also answers the question many fans have been asking, which is ‘what happened to those babies Sidney had in 2022’s ‘Scream'?’
Where the film falters is in the final act. There’s a very interesting idea at the heart of ‘Scream 7', that lends itself to a whole lot of nostalgia, but the eventual reveal doesn’t pack the same punch that previous instalments have. It’s better than the messy and OTT end that ‘Scream VI’ delivered but it’s not a classic in the vein of ‘Scream' or ‘Scream 2'. There’s a recurring element throughout the film that will make long-time fans very happy but that also serves to set a bar that’s just too high for the film to top when the denouement arrives. I can’t say a whole lot more without giving the game away, but I think plenty of franchise fans will feel the same way I did.
‘Scream 7' for the most part is a fun thrill-ride and it’s a stronger instalment than ‘Scream VI'. There are some incredibly tense moments, plenty of great scares and some of the best chase sequences we’ve seen yet, but the film fumbles it at the last hurdle. As the franchise continues on, the motivation for the person (or people) putting on the Ghostface mask begins to feel more-and-more stretched. With rumours of ‘Scream 8’ already circulating, it looks like the franchise isn't going anywhere but it's going to be very interesting to see what story there's left to tell.
Cast: Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Isabel May, Joel McHale, Mason Gooding, Jasmin Savoy Brown, McKenna Grace Director: Kevin Williamson Writers: Kevin Williamson & Guy Busick Certificate: 18 Duration: 114 mins Released by: Paramount Pictures Release date: 26th February 2026
