Theater owners have good reason to scream for joy as the Scream 7 prepares to open in theaters this weekend.
From Spyglass and Paramount, the slasher pic is expected to open to at least $40 million, which would mark the best three-day launch of the year to date. Tracking is more bullish, with the National Research Group projecting $45 million. If the leading firm is right, that would also mark the top opening of the franchise ahead of Scream VI, which launched to $44.4 million in March 2023, not adjusted for inflation. It is targeting a $60 million global launch.
The pic sees Neve Campbell return to the iconic series in the role of Sidney after sitting out Scream VI because of a salary dispute after appearing in every film up to that point.
Kevin Williamson, who wrote the script for the original Scream, Scream 2 and Scream 4, directs the seventh installment. The story follows Sidney as she returns to her hometown with her daughter (Isabel May), who soon cross paths with a new Ghostface killer. The girl is named Tatum, the same name of Rose McGowan’s character in the 1996’s Scream who was murdered.
A trailer released in October focused on Ghostface targeting Sidney and Tatum, with Sidney teaching her daughter the rules of surviving the brutal killer. Another ad played during the Super Bowl, underscoring how important the franchise is to David Ellison and his new regime at Paramount.
In addition to Campbell, original star Courteney Cox returns as reporter Gale Weathers.
Spyglass fully produced the movie, with Paramount co-financing half of the net $45 million budget.
Scream 7 has a secret weapon in its arsenal — it will be the first installment to play in Imax. It is also playing across all other premium formats. Generally speaking, Imax doesn’t handover its entire footprint to a genre movie, but times are changing as exhibitors wrestle with a slowdown in product.
Scream launched in 1996 with the late Wes Craven going on to direct three sequels known for skewering horror genre tropes. In 2022, the fifth film reinvented the franchise under the direction of directing team Radio Silence, with Campbell, Cox and David Arquette returning alongside a crew of new actors.
They followed it up with Scream VI, which in 2023 became the franchise’s top grossing movie, grossing $108.4 million domestically and $166.6 million globally
While Campbell’s return marks a highly anticipated moment for fans, two stars of the revival films Scream (2022) and Scream VI will not be back. Melissa Barrera was fired from Scream 7 because of her social media posts about the Israel-Hamas war. Jenna Ortega had already left the film voluntarily before the firing, though it was not made public until after. Christopher Landon, who was set to direct the horror sequel, also exited amid intense fan backlash after Barrera’s firing, despite not being the one to fire the actress.
Other franchise stars returning include David Arquette as Dewey Riley, completing the legacy trio alongside Sidney and Gale. Matthew Lillard, one of the original co-Ghostface killers, is coming back as Stu Macher, as well as Scott Foley, Scream 3‘s Ghostface Roman Bridger — Sidney’s half-brother. Siblings Chad and Mindy, played by Mason Gooding and Jasmin Savoy Brown are also in Scream 7.
Newcomers to the franchise include May, Michelle Randolph, Joel McHale, Anna Camp, Mckenna Grace, Ethan Embry, Mark Consuelos, Jimmy Tatro, Celeste O’Connor, Asa Germann and Sam Rechner.