Anna Camp, Annabelle Toomey, Asa Germann, Celeste O'Connor, Courteney Cox, Ethan Embry, horror, Indiana, Isabel May, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Jimmy Tatro, Joel McHale, Kevin Williamson, Maggie Toomey, Mark Consuelos, Mason Gooding, Matthew Lillard, Mckenna Grace, Michelle Randolph, movies, Neve Campbell, reviews, Sam Rechner, Scream, Scream 7, Tim Simons
February 27, 2026
by Carla Hay
Directed by Kevin Williamson
Culture Representation: Taking place in the fictional cities of Pine Grove, Indiana (and briefly in Woodsboro, California), the horror film “Scream 7” features a predominantly white cast of characters (with some African Americans and Latin people) representing the working-class and middle-class.
Culture Clash: Sidney Prescott, the “final girl” in 1996’s “Scream” movie, is now married to a police chief and is the mother of a 17-year-old daughter, who feels overshadowed by Sidney’s fame as a rare survivor of the Ghostface Killer, as Sidney’s family and others become the targets of another Ghostface Killer murder spree.
Culture Audience: “Scream 7” will appeal primarily to people who are fans of the “Scream” franchise and horror movie sequels that make several references to its preceding movies.
The “Scream” horror movie franchise built its reputation on poking fun at itself and other slasher movies. With “Scream 7,” this franchise invites ridicule, but in a way where people are more likely to groan than laugh. The welcome return of the Sidney Prescott character is surrounded by a bunch of recycled ideas and plot holes. The good news: Unlike some other previous “Scream” sequels, viewers who are new to the franchise won’t feel too lost if they haven’t seen any of the previous “Scream” movies. The bad news: The reason why is because “Scream 7” gets bogged down in so many horror clichés, the movie becomes redundant and utterly predictable.
Directed by Kevin Williamson (who co-wrote the “Scream 7” screenplay with Guy Busick), “Scream 7” reunites Williamson with Neve Campbell and Courteney Cox, two of the stars of the first movie in the “Scream” franchise: 1996’s “Scream.” Williamson also wrote 1996’s “Scream,” 1997’s “Scream 2,” 2000’s “Scream 3” and 2011’s “Scream 4,” which were all directed by Wes Craven, who died in 2015. Williamson has spent most of his career on TV series, with writer/executive producer credits for series such as “Dawson’s Creek” and “The Vampire Diaries.”
The “Scream” franchise had a reboot with 2022’s “Scream” and 2024’s “Scream VI,” from co-directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett and co-writers James Vanderbilt and Busick, the filmmaking team that ramped up the satirical comedy in both movies. “Scream 7” goes back to basics in a way that makes the movie a little too basic. Even though “Scream 7” has modern technology references, such as the use of artificial intelligence for deepfake videos, everything in “Scream 7” is an inferior and outdated rehash of other “Scream” movies.
By now, most people who watch a “Scream” movie already know that Sidney Prescott (played by Campbell) was the sole survivor of the Ghostface Killer serial murders in her hometown of Woodsboro, California. In the world of “Scream,” this murder spree got a lot of media coverage and was the basis of a popular horror movie series called “Stab.” It’s also common knowledge that each “Scream” movie has a different Ghostface Killer, who wears a ghost face mask and who could be one or more people.
In “Scream 7,” Sidney (whose last name is now Evans) is now living in Pine Grove, Indiana, where she owns a small business called the Little Latte Coffee Shop. (“Scream 7” was actually filmed in the Atlanta area.) Sidney’s loving and supportive husband Mark Evans (played by Joel McHale) is the police chief of Pine Grove. Sidney and Mark have a 17-year-old daughter named Tatum Evans (played by Isabel May), who wants more independence from overprotective Sidney. Sidney and Mark have kindergarten-aged twin daughters named Emma Evans (played by Maggie Toomey) and Rebecca Evans (played by Annabelle Toomey), but the twins are not part of the main story in “Scream 7” because the twins are spending time with Mark’s mother.
“Scream 7” begins with a 15-minute sequence of a couple named Scott (played by Jimmy Tatro) and Madison (played by Michelle Randolph), who are in their late 20s to early 30s, in Woodsboro. Scott and Madison have signed up for a Monster House Experience to stay overnight at a replica of the house where Sidney lived in the first “Scream” movie. It’s nighttime when Scott and Madison have arrived at the house. Unrealistically, there are no employees in sight.
Inside the house is a lot of “Stab” memorabilia, including a life-sized animatronic robot of the Ghostface Killer. Scott is the horror aficionado in this couple, while Madison is jittery and doesn’t really want to be there. This entire sequence is just an elaborate “jump scare” setup to let viewers know that the Ghostface Killer murder spree is about to begin again. Unfortunately, this long sequence didn’t need to be in “Scream 7” at all, based on what happens in the rest of movie.
All the new characters in “Scream 7” are quite bland and generic. Tatum, who wants to be an actress, is insecure because she’s living in the shadow of Sidney’s notorious fame. Sidney doesn’t trust Tatum’s boyfriend Ben Brown (played by Sam Rechner), a classmate of Tatum’s, who is first seen sneaking into Tatum’s bedroom at night. Ben is a stereotypical good-looking teenage guy who excels in sports and academics. He is very skilled in computer technology and is respectful to Tatum and her family. And that’s all that viewers will learn about Ben in “Scream 7.”
Tatum’s closest female friends are classmates Hannah Thurman (played by Mckenna Grace) and Chloe Parker (played by Celeste O’Connor), who are part of a school play with Tatum and other students. Hannah has diva-like ways, while Chloe has a down-to-earth personality. The play’s theater director George Williams (played by Tim Simons) rudely critiques Tatum’s acting skills and her personality, by telling Tatum that she’s not as confident and brave as her mother Sidney.
Another classmate of Tatum’s is true crime fanatic Lucas Bowden (played by Asa Germann), who wants to interview Sidney for a true crime podcast that he plans to start. Lucas and his divorced mother Jessica Bowden (played by Anna Camp) live next door to the Evans family. Jessica is embarrassed that Lucas is star-struck by Sidney, who is polite but emotionally closed-off when Lucas asks Sidney about her Ghostface Killer experiences. Lucas’ father is not involved in his life. Jessica bitterly tells Sidney that Jessica’s ex-husband/Lucas’ father is a deadbeat dad who abandoned the family.
The “Scream 7” terror begins for Sidney and others when one of these teenagers gets murdered by a Ghostface Killer. Sidney also starts getting video phone calls from someone who claims to be Stu Macher (played by Matthew Lillard), one of the Ghostface Killers who died in the first “Scream” movie. Whoever is calling has put Sidney on notice that Sidney, her family members and other people in Pine Grove are going to be the next murder victims.
Sidney and other people suspect that someone is using deepfake technology to impersonate Stu. However, certain things happen that make Sidney wonder if Stu could really be alive. Sidney does some investigating at a place called Fallbrook Psychiatric Hospital, where a hospital orderly named Marco (played by Ethan Embry) gives her some information.
Whenever the Ghostface Killer murder spree starts again, ambitious TV news journalist Gale Weathers (played by Cox) is on the scene to report what happens. Gale has made a career out of Ghostface Killer reporting, including writing a best-selling book about the Ghostface Killer murder spree that happened in Woodsboro. In “Scream 7,” Gale has gone back to being a freelance reporter, after her high-profile TV talk show was canceled. Her current job is considered a “step down” for Gale in her career.
In “Scream 7,” Gale has arrived in Pine Grove from New York City. She is accompanied by often-bickering twins Chad Meeks-Martin (played by Mason Gooding) and Mindy Meeks-Martin (played by Jasmin Savoy Brown), who first appeared in “Scream VI” as New York City college students who experienced Ghostface Killer violence. Chad and Mindy are now Gale’s interns. The uncle of Mindy and Chad was Randy Meeks (played by Jamie Kennedy), whose fate is shown in “Scream 2.” A local Pine Grove TV reporter named Robbie Rivers (played by Mark Consuelos) gets competitive with Gale over the Ghostface Killer story in Pine Grove.
“Scream 7” has a sufficient amount of suspense in its chase scenes and kill scenes. The best of these scenes is when Sidney and Tatum are trying to escape in between a house’s walls while the Ghostface Killer is stabbing through the walls. However, “Scream 7” has some plot holes and disjointed scenes that are too big to ignore. And pity the residents of Pine Grove, which has one of the most incompetent police departments you could ever see in a slasher horror movie. When “Scream 7” reveals the killer or killers toward the end of the movie, it’s underwhelming and nonsensical.
In order for the “Scream” franchise to thrive, it needs to have above-average stories and new characters who seem authentic and interesting. Sidney, Chad and Mindy are the only characters in “Scream 7” who are written fairly well. Gale in “Scream 7” is a lesser version of her famously acerbic self. “Scream 7” will satisfy horror fans who want a formulaic slasher flick, but the movie wastes a lot of potential to be clever and genuinely self-deprecating, which are characteristics of the best “Scream” movies.
Paramount Pictures will release “Scream 7” in U.S. cinemas on February 27, 2026.