There’ve been a lot of differing viewpoints on what the fifth installment in the Scream franchise actually is. Obviously, it’s a continuation of the mythology originated by Wes Craven in his 1996 postmodern slasher classic, but it’s got the exact same title as the first movie, so it’s also clearly setting itself up as a bold reinvention of the series.
Scream has always been known for its refreshing reliance on self-awareness and meta humor, especially when it comes to the standard tropes of the horror genre, and based on directorial duo Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett’s last effort Ready or Not, they’re more than happy, willing and able to subvert expectations at every turn.
The filmmakers went into great detail a few months back about why Scream is a sequel and not a reboot, but now Courtney Cox is saying that it’s neither. In a new interview, the longtime Gale Weathers claims that it’s not really a direct follow-up to the previous four installments at all, but will instead set the stage for a full-blown relaunch.
“This is the fifth one, it’s not Scream 5, though. This is Scream. The directors are incredible, they’re making it absolutely, it’s a new franchise. It’s hip. It’s scary. It’s just a new Scream. It’s not a reboot, it’s not a remake, it’s just a brand new launch. I think it’s gonna be fantastic.”
Plenty of legacy sequels have leaned on recruiting original cast members to pair up with a raft of fresh faces, and Scream is no different in that regard with Cox, David Arquette and Neve Campbell all reprising their roles. Plot details still remain relatively thin on the ground, but everyone involved is talking up the project as possessing the potential to have the same effect on horror that Craven’s opener did when it first arrived, which led to a slew of thinly-veiled imitations and inferior knockoffs. For now, though, let’s just hope the fifth entry can come close to matching the quality of its predecessors.
