Kevin Williamson opted to make Neve Campbell the focus of Scream 7
Scream 7 director Kevin Williamson decided to make the returning Neve Campbell's character Sidney Prescott the main focus of the film after the departure of her younger co-stars Jenna Ortega and Melissa Barrera.
Kevin Williamson decided to put Neve Campbell's Sidney Prescott at the heart of Scream 7.
The 52-year-old actress returns for the latest film in the slasher franchise after sitting out 2023's Scream VI due to a pay row and the director opted to make her alter ego the central focus of the picture after the exits of younger co-stars Jenna Ortega and Melissa Barrera – with the latter being fired for social media posts about the conflict in Gaza.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter at the movie's premiere in Los Angeles, Williamson recalled: "I got a call from one of the producers, William (Sherak), and said, 'Well, we're going to have to come up with something else.'
"I've known Neve for 30 years, I knew what she wanted. Yes there was the salary dispute and paying her, but she's also an actress and she wants to act. She wants a role.
"So we wanted to do a Sidney-centric film and catch up with Sidney Prescott all these years later and sort of see what she's up to."
Williamson – who has penned three previous movies in the Scream franchise – explained that he was keen to explore how Sidney's encounters with the murderous Ghostface have shaped the character's life and her relationship with daughter Tatum Evans (Isabel May).
The 60-year-old filmmaker explained: "What's her family like? What would happen if she had a daughter the same age that she was when all this started? How does she parent, how does she talk about the past?
"She's so traumatised, every conversation Sidney has ends in blood and guts. 'Mom, what was your first time like?' 'Well it was the night all my friends got killed.'
"What was college like? 'Oh, well, my first semester everyone got killed.' It's just not something you want to talk about, but if you have a daughter who desperately wants to connect with you, that's a conflict that we establish in the movie."
Neve recently suggested that she was happy with her decision not to appear in Scream VI because she felt "undervalued" by the salary offered by film bosses.
She told CBS Mornings: "When I made that decision, I just didn't think I could live with myself walking on set. I just didn't feel right. I just knew that my value to this franchise was bigger than what had been offered. For me, I needed to make that choice."
The Lincoln Lawyer star admits that she feared the pay dispute would spell the end of her time in the Scream franchise – having first portrayed Sidney in the original 1996 film.
Campbell said: "When I said goodbye to it, I thought that was it. I knew that there was a good chance that would be it."
