‘Scream’ directors tease identity of Sam’s mystery mom

We always knew 2022’s Scream was going to link back to the 1996 original in some substantial ways, but one continuation we had no idea about before its release was that one of its new cast of characters would have a biological connection to the most notorious killer in the franchise. Early on in the film, we learn that new protagonist Sam Carpenter (Melissa Barrera) is the secret daughter of Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich).

With Ulrich reprising his role thanks to Sam’s hallucinations of her dead serial killer dad, Scream keeps the focus on the heroine’s posthumous relationship with her father. Her mom, however, is never even named in the movie. Seeing as Sam’s mother was someone who went to school at Woodsboro High with Billy, Sidney (Neve Campbell) and the other characters, they may well be someone already known to us.

It’s still unclear if that’s the case, but directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett have now confirmed that Sam’s mom was originally supposed to appear in the film. As Bettinelli-Olpin told Nerdist, she was in early drafts of the script before being cut in order to ensure Sam’s bond with her younger sister, Tara (Jenna Ortega), was the priority.

“She was definitely in the script. But it just never made the cut,” the filmmaker explained. “It felt like we were kind of opening the movie up too much and making it not as much about the sisters… It’s hard to say, but it sounds like there’s an interesting story there…”

Note that the co-director is careful not to open up too much about Sam’s mom, merely teasing that there is an “interesting story” to tell with her. It seems likely that the Ready or Not duo are thinking about introducing Sam’s mom properly in Scream 6 if that ends up happening. Going by the success of the new film, that seems like a given.

With Sam and Tara no doubt remaining at the center of the franchise going forward, expect there to be more revelations about her past, her family, and maybe even her own growing darkness as the Ghostface saga continues. For now, you can catch Scream in theaters.