You may remember that “Scream” franchise final girl Neve Campbell decided to pass on making “Scream VI” after Spyglass Media failed to pay what she was asking, only to bring her back when they fired Melissa Barrera for her public support of the people of Palestine (Jenna Ortega eventually exited as well). There is some new information about the added costs involved with “Scream 7” moving away from Barrera/Ortega with the next installment.
After losing their two franchise leads and director Christopher Landon, Spyglass would pivot to getting legacy folks involved by having creator/screenwriter Kevin Williamson (who wasn’t involved with the previous two films from Radio Silence) take on the directorial duties from Landon, alongside having Campbell back as Sidney Prescott.
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We now have an idea of what those extra costs looked like for that creative pivot, according to a report from Variety. They detail that Campbell was able to secure a hefty $7 million for the return, a solid number given the dispute on the previous film, and Courtney Cox (another OG franchise pillar cast member alongside a returning Matthew Lillard and David Arquette) was able to make $2 million in her own deal. However, that pivot meant some costly rewrites to the script, said to be in the range of $500,000.
“The actor was able to secure a nearly $7 million deal, a hefty raise, and a major salary for the horror genre,” the report claims.
That combination ends up nearly $10 million, which we assume isn’t even close to what Barrera and Ortega would have earned if they had stuck around. Also mentioned in the report is the studio’s expectation of the seventh installment to open domestically in the $40 million range, despite higher expectations elsewhere.
An official logline for the legacy sequel:
When a new Ghostface killer emerges in the quiet town where Sidney Prescott (Campbell) has built a new life, her darkest fears are realized as her daughter (May) becomes the next target. Determined to protect her family, Sidney must face the horrors of her past to put an end to the bloodshed once and for all.
Others among the cast of “Scream 7” include Joel McHale, Isabel May, Mckenna Grace, Anna Camp, Celeste O’Connor, and Asa Germann.
“Scream 7” is heading to theaters this weekend via Paramount Pictures, and you can watch the final trailer below.
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