After a prolonged shoot due to the pandemic, filming on Scream 5 is officially locked. As confirmed by the movie's co-director Tyler Gillett, the upcoming sequel in the long-running horror franchise is completely finished well ahead of its release next year. Now, we wait. But for eager and impatient fans out there, Gillett has also assured that the wait will be worth it.

Taking to Instagram, Tyler Gillett shared a behind-the-scenes photo from the studio while doing post-production work on the sequel, simply titled Scream. While we don't get to see Ghostface or any of the cast, the message shared with the photo is what truly matters here, as the filmmaker confirmed that the picture is locked, meaning it's finished. This is it's final form and the version of the movie that will arrive in theaters next year. Gillett captioned the photo with the following.

"Picture locked. I promise it'll be worth the wait."

Tyler Gillett is co-directing the new Scream movie with Matt Bettinelli-Olpin. The duo broke through with the hit horror/comedy Ready or Not. Along with their producing partner Chad Villella, they are collectively known as Radio Silence. All of the previous movies in the series were directed by horror legend Wes Craven. He passed away in 2015. Kevin Williamson, who wrote the original slasher classic, is on board as an executive producer.

Much remains mysterious about the movie but we know the production went to great lengths to guard its secrets. Different versions of the script were created to help prevent spoilers. What we do know is that it won't be a full-on reboot. Many cast members from the previous entries are returning, including Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott. Other returning cast members include David Arquette as Dewey Riley, Courteney Cox as Gale Weathers and Marley Shelton as Judy Hicks.

Newcomers for the fifth entry include Jack Quaid (The Boys), Melissa Barrera (In the Heights) and Jenna Ortega (Jane the Virgin). James Vanderbilt (Murder Mystery, The Amazing Spider-Man) and Guy Busick (Ready or Not, Castle Rock) penned the screenplay. Spyglass Media is behind the sequel after they obtained the rights to the franchise a couple of years back. They partnered with Paramount Pictures, who are on board to distribute the movie. That means it will likely end up streaming on Paramount+ less than two months after it hits theaters.

Scream is one of the most successful franchises in horror history. The four previous movies have earned more than $600 million combined at the global box office. The series kicked off in 1996 with Wes Craven's original, which was a meta take on the slasher genre. The original Scream was the highest-grossing slasher movie in history until 2018's Halloween came along. The franchise has been dormant since 2011's Scream 4. We'll be sure to keep you posted as any further details are made available. The new Scream is set to hit theaters on January 14, 2022. Be sure to check out the new behind-the-scenes photo for yourself from Tyler Gillett's Instagram.