#REVIEW: “SCREAM 7”

Review by Amanda Gilmore for Mr. Will Wong

The seventh instalment of the Franchise follows Sidney, who now lives in a small town in Indiana. She lives with her husband Mark (Joel McHale) and daughter Tatum (Isabel May). Her darkest fears become realized when Ghostface begins targeting her daughter and her group of friends. Thus, forcing Sidney must once again face off with the masked killer to protect everything she holds dear. This character progression of survivor to protective and fierce mother results in one of Campbell’s finest performances as Sidney.

This Franchise is known for its epic — killer — openings and this seventh instalment doesn’t disappoint. After all, this is written and directed by Kevin Williamson (the man who wrote 1, 2 & 4). Here, Williamson gives the opening a modern update. Instead of someone being in their own home and receiving a call, it opens with a couple (two standout performances from Michelle Randolph and Jimmy Tatro) staying at an Airbnb. But not just any Airbnb: this one’s the Macher House. The house where it all began. Now turned into a Stab fan’s fantasy stay it gives the full Stab experience. There are outlines of where the bodies were found. Little cards with insider information. Oh, and of course, it includes receiving that familiar phone call.

We’ve been told that this instalment was not going to have the meta commentary of its predecessors. This opening is the first indicator of that change. This strong opening hints at this being a commentary on society’s true crime obsessed world. And to some extent, Williamson’s Script does include how true crime junkies are everywhere. Even in the small town where real-life final girl Sidney Prescott-Evans (Neve Campbell) now lives. Her teenage neighbour next door is obsessed with the real-life Stab story. Then there’s Tatum, who isn’t true crime obsessed, but wants to know everything about what happened to her mother. Especially the things not disclosed in the books and movies.

One beloved aspect of the Scream franchise is that they allow us to care about each character. We learn about each member in the group of friends, so when they start dying off, we are emotionally invested. With this seventh instalment, the focus becomes slightly scattered. Half our time is spent with Sidney in her quest to hunt Ghostface, the other with Tatum and her friends. This doesn’t allow us enough time to become invested in Tatum’s group of friends. We don’t really know anything about them before they start getting killed off.

Now, another beloved aspect of the Scream franchise is the vicious kills. In this respect, Scream 7 delivers with inventive and gore-soaked murder sequences that will have fans rejoicing. Let’s say that audience members may never look at a beer tap the same way when they sit at their local bar. The rage involved in these killings would lead one to believe that this killer may be closer to Sidney than ever before. There’s even the possibility that Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard) may still be alive. Sidney receives videos that may or may not be deep fakes from Stu. Regardless if it is Stu or not, having Lillard reprise this role is a delight.

There will be a lot of guessing throughout Scream 7 as to who the killer is. As they say, it’s usually someone close to you. Family. Friends. This time around, Williamson includes the possibility of AI and deep fakes to keep audiences on their toes. All the other Ghostface predecessors had a heavy personal agenda for their killing sprees. This time around, some fans might find that this Ghostface’s reasoning lacks the gravity we’ve come to expect.

Scream 7 is definitely another fun adventure with Sidney and Ghostface. However, this instalment does feel different from the rest.

Paramount Pictures Canada releases SCREAM 7 on Friday, February 27, 2026.