OG Scream star Neve Campbell wants Scream 7 to "go back to" Wes Craven's original, and "find the suspense and really concentrate on scary and not bloody"

Scream 7 director Kevin Williamson has teased a little of what to expect from the horror sequel, revealing that OG final girl Neve Campbell pushed for the movie to ditch the gore of its predecessor and go back to the franchise's more suspenseful roots.

In the new book Your Favorite Scary Movie: How the Scream Films Rewrote the Rules of Horror, the filmmaker – who famously penned Wes Craven's 1996 original, as well as Scream 2, Scream 3, and Scream 4 – explained to author Ashley Cullins why it felt like the right time to "reset" the series.

"Neve [wanted] to go back to the first one and find the suspense and really concentrate on scary and not bloody," Williamson noted (via Bloody Disgusting). "She was smart. She goes, 'This is the time to do it because we're moving away from New York. We're going back to Sidney's life. This is the time to reset a little bit. And I'm like, 'Yup, let's do it.'"

Scream 5 saw Campbell's Sidney Prescott take a backseat, as a fresh-(Ghost)faced killer set their sights on Melissa Barrera's Sam Carpenter and her pals. Realizing the similarities between their adversary and Sidney's all those years back, the gang reached out to her for advice, which led to Campbell's character to reluctantly return to Woodsboro. The Ghostface she met there, though, was more of a brutal slayer than the bitter boys, vengeful moms, and surprise siblings she's faced off against in the past.

Sidney didn't appear at all in Scream 6, but due to Barrera and co-star Jenna Ortega's shock exit from the follow-up, she is set to take center stage once again.

"I have made it very clear, I think publicly too, that Sidney has been through so much torment, and she has been through so much trauma, that to give her anything less than a happy ending is mean," Williamson also teased in the new book. "It's just sacrilegious."

Scream 7 wrapped filming back in mid March, and is set to release in theaters on February 27, 2026. For more, check out our guide to some of the most exciting upcoming horror movies heading our way.