'Scream 7' Review
- John Odette
- 2 hours ago
- 3 min read
Release Date: 02/27/26 [Cinemas]
Genre: Horror. Mystery.
MPAA: Rated R.
Distributor: Paramount Pictures.
The Verdict: A Mistake
There’s a brief scene in Scream 7, the latest in the Ghostface killer franchise, where Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) softly scolds her daughter for finding and wearing her old college coat that was buried in the attic, a coat last seen during the events of Scream 2.
“You could have asked,” she muses.
Her daughter, Tatum (Isabel May), scoffs and puts the jacket down, frustrated that her mother’s past remains a mystery despite its extensive coverage across the meta Stab films and true-crime series. Tatum, of course, is forever linked to her mother’s past because her namesake, Tatum Riley (Rose McGowan), was a victim in the events of the first Scream film thirty years ago.
I bring up this heavy-handed nostalgia-driven scene because that is what this franchise has become. Scream 7 creaks along as a vapid parody of its own franchise, thus, sadly, fulfilling the most ironic prophecy this series was doomed to achieve.
Kevin Williamson, writer of Scream 1, 2, and 4, takes up the mantle of director for the time in this series. The Scream franchise was truly at its strongest with the pairing of Williamson’s writing and the horror auteur Wes Craven handling directing duties. While many consider Scream 3 to be the universally acknowledged low point of the series, the fifth and sixth entries, created by the directing team Radio Silence, were a fun, creative new step; a shot-in-the-arm for such a long-running franchise. But unfortunately, Scream 7 now holds the crown as the weakest film; Williamson’s attempt to create mystery, development, and intrigue falls painfully short. A more confident hand was needed here.
This seventh Scream film was meant to be the trilogy-capper for the new storyline starring Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega. After Barrera’s firing, and Ortega and Radio Silence walking, Williamson and company seemingly rushed to make a deadline. The result is what will likely become the weakest, derivative, and bland Scream. This was not my least favorite Scream movie; this is simply a bad film.
There are a few bright moments. The returning cast of Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott and Courteney Cox as Gale Weathers works well, with Mason Gooding and Jasmin Savoy Brown returning as Mindy and Chad (their late uncle being Randy Meeks) to provide some continuity from the two previous films.
The rest of the cast seemed more like stock and filler. I appreciated Joel McHale’s turn as Mark, Sidney’s husband and town police chief, but even he felt out of place. Other cast members include Mckenna Grace, Anna Camp, and Ethan Embry.
There are a few effective kills, one of which is quite creative. Much of the carnage in this film feels flat and tired, though. For the first time in franchise history, I was bored.
Scream’s penchant for commentary on the horror genre helped set it apart and often above its peers. The usual expository scene explaining the tropes is cut short here. Additionally, this series is revered for its murder-mystery element. By the time the climax arrived, I was more than aware of who the killer, or killers, were, simply through the process of elimination.
The resolve of the motivation behind the killer’s (or killers’) was easily the most frustrating part. Much of the dialogue ran in circles, and the motives became unclear and half-baked. The flimsy, underwhelming reveals, as rough as they were, are a byproduct of the rushed production that made Scream 7 a film it was not intended to become.
There are also so many rumors of certain previous characters returning. I won’t reveal who they are. Suffice it to say that the additions of some of these characters were borderline insulting and completely unnecessary. The movie would have been stronger if it had gone for the full swing rather than the half-measures that show up in the final film.
The identity of Ghostface and their reasons were a sour mix of predictability and randomness. This fact matters because the series finally morphs into a snake eating its own tail. Scream 7 is the very film that Scream was parodying at the series inception. I am struggling to truly uncover more positives. This film will not win over new people to this franchise and will likely disappoint viewers who have come to expect the slicker, more intellectual strides that have become series staples.
Instead of building on the new direction with Sidney in the lead, Scream 7 rolls backwards. This is not the worst slasher movie ever made, but it is a new low for the franchise. Rather than the usual high standards we’ve come to expect from a Scream film, this new film arrives DOA with no identity, excitement, or fun.