Scream 2022 director Tyler Gillett teases new characters could survive Ghostface in the upcoming film and lead to future sequels in the franchise. Gillett and Ready or Not cohort Matt Bettinelli-Olpin take over as directors of the latest chapter of the horror series following the death of original helmer Wes Craven in 2015. The new Scream also marks the second film of the franchise to not be written by Kevin Williamson, who instead serves as executive producer while fellow Ready or Not alums James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick penned the script.
The latest Scream takes place 25 years after the 1996 franchise starter and brings the story back to the small town of Woodsboro, in which a new killer has taken up the Ghostface mantle and is targeting a group of teenagers with ties to the brutal murders of the town's past. The group must turn to original survivors Sidney Prescott, Dewey Riley, Gale Weathers and Judy Hicks for help determining who the killer is and what they need to do to survive. Neve Campbell, David Arquette, Courteney Cox, Roger L. Jackson and Marley Shelton all reprise their legacy roles for Scream alongside the cast for franchise newcomers, some of whom include Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, Jack Quaid and Kyle Gallner.
As the film draws closer to its January release, Gillett caught up with Total Film to discuss Scream 2022. When reflecting on the development of the sequel/franchise relaunch, the director teased that the direction taken for the film could lead to another sequel movie with the new generation of characters. See what Gillett said below:
"This new cast of characters is so wonderful. The legacy cast, they're so wonderful. I think what we discovered, and what [screenwriters] Guy [Busick] and James [Vanderbilt] did, is they found a real reason for the next story to exist. We know that there is more gas in the tank. There are more stories to be told in Woodsboro, and about these characters, for sure."
Since it was first confirmed that the new Scream would serve as both a sequel to the previous films and a relaunch for the franchise as a whole, audiences have been eager to learn more about what's to come from the movie. The first Scream trailer sparked the fire of the theory mill from fans of the series, with speculations ranging from Dewey finally being killed in the film to Sidney actually being the killer. The biggest point of intrigue amongst viewers is the question of why the new Ghostface is targeting them, with the trailer indicating their main tie is they are all connected to those involved in the previous string of murders.
The most interesting thing to note about Gillett's tease of Scream's future is his highlight on the new generation of characters having more stories to tell. Similar to Terminator: Dark Fate issuing in a new protagonist with the help of a legacy heroine, the new Scream looks to be passing on the mantle, in a way, between Campbell's Sidney and Melissa Barrera's Sam, though with the directors also teasing the trailer to be full of fakeouts, this could very well be a red herring. Only time will tell when Scream 2022 hits theaters on January 14.
Source: Total Film
