Summary
WhenScream 7is released on February 27th, 2026, it will bealmost30 years since the original movie came out in 1996. Thehorrorgenre has never been the same since. The movie that introduced final girl Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) hasinspired and influenced many other slashers, from comedic stories to more serious films. Every time a new movie winks at itself or features meta commentary on the genre, they owe a lot tothe story of Ghostface terrorizing teenagers in Woodsboro, California.
It’s amazing to think that whenScreamwas released in December 1996, no one knew the actors, and it was unclear that it would becomesuch a popular horror franchise.Scream 7is, of course, the latest entry in a popular franchise and it’s not a low-budget horror film. However, there area few ways the upcoming sequel can capture the spirit and tone of the original 1996 movie.
Here’s How Scream 7 Can Match The First Scream Movie’s Low-Budget Feeling And Tone
In an oral history ofScreampublished byThe Hollywood Reporterin 2021, several crew members talked about the movie’s low budget, and it’s fascinating to hear what they had to say.Screamhad a low budget of $14 millionand grossed $173 million, which was impressive. As producer Cathy Konrad said:
“What’s always fun about these kinds of gems is that some of the best work gets done when nobody’s looking. This was little. The budget was low. A lot of the actors in it were not really known. You could fly under the radar a little bit because the stakes weren’t that high.”
AlthoughScreamisn’t an independent movie with one setting and only a handful of actors,the low budget makes it feel charming. Most importantly,Screamtakes place in Woodsboro, California, which is a memorable and nice small town (besides the shocking murders taking place, that is). Most of the scenes happen in one of three places: Sidney’s house, Stu Macher’s (Matthew Lillard) house, Sidney’s high school, and the Woodsboro Police Department. Of course, Casey Becker’s (Drew Barrymore) home is also the setting for the franchise’s most famous opening kill.
Scream 7should only have a few locations, which will help it capture the original’s low-budget vibe.No matter who is featured inScream 7’s opening kill, it couldtake place at Sidney’s house or Sidney’s daughter’s high school. There shouldn’t be a lot of different settings. With the focus on Sidney’s family,Scream 7can narrow its focus instead of getting too wide and complicated. If Sidney has a job, some scenes can take place at her office, and of course, fans also want to seeGale Weathers (Courteney Cox) hard at work as a reporter. Not a lot of fans enjoyed the Hollywood setting ofScream 3, even though the film has some great characters, likeParker Posey’s ditzy actress Jennifer Jolie.
It would be great if the sequel went back to basics and felt likea new, more contemporary version ofScream.There’s so much to love and appreciate about the original movie, from Sidney’s close friendship with Tatum Riley (Rose McGowan) to Dewey Riley’s (David Arquette) silly, naive, and innocent personality. At its core,Screamis silly, goofy, smart, and meta. Since it’shard to know what meta commentaryScream 7can have, it seems more important than ever that the main characters get in at least a few smart jokes about the horror genre. Otherwise, audiences are going to wonder if the franchise has lost its spark, and it’s going to feel like a missed opportunity.
What Was The Budget Of Every Scream Movie?
The firstScreammovie had the lowest budget of the entire franchise.According toBox Office Mojo,Scream 2had a budget of $24 million,which was $10 million more than the 1996 movie. Also according to Box Office Mojo, bothScream 3andScream 4hadlarger budgets of $40 million.Then, according toForbes,Scream (2022)had a budget of $24 million.
Scream 6had a budget of $35 million, and whileScreamis a successful franchise, the sixth entry’s box office numbers are particularly impressive. In April 2023,Varietyreported that the movie had made $100 million, which was a big deal since it had been several years sinceScream 2made $101 million when it was in theaters. According to Box Office Mojo,Scream 6grossed$166,577,232 worldwide.
