Spyglass Media Group's upcoming Scream movie has found its distributor, as the company is teaming up with Paramount Pictures to release the horror sequel in theaters in 2021. As previously announced, the new movie will be directed by Ready or Not helmers Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, stepping in for the late Wes Craven who directed all four prior installments. Expected to be a sequel to the previous movies, most are referring to the sequel as Scream 5 at this time, but that title has not yet been made official.
More than likely, several surviving characters from prior Scream movies in the franchise will return so as long as negotiations go well. David Arquette was first to announce that he's officially signed on to reprise the role of Sheriff Dewey Riley, and fans are keeping their fingers crossed his ex-wife Courteney Cox will be soon to follow with an announcement that she'll be back as Gale Weathers-Riley. Sydney Prescott actress Neve Campbell, who's been leading the series since the original, has also said that she's in talks to reprise the iconic role for the new movie. As unlikely as it may be, Matthew Lillard says he's up for returning as part one's Stu Macher as well.
Reportedly, Spyglass and Paramount are planning a 2021 release in theaters for Scream 5, but no official premiere date has yet been set. Also working with Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett on the project are James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick, who've signed on to co-write the screenplay. Previously, Kevin Williamson had written the first, second, and fourth movies, with Ehren Kruger penning the third. Though Williamson won't be writing Scream 5, he'll still be a part of the project as an executive producer alongside Chad Villella of Radio Silence. Project X Entertainment's Vanderbilt, Paul Neinstein, and William Sherak will also produce.
Released in 1996, Scream tells the story of a masked maniac murdering teenagers in the town of Woodsboro, California in manners reminiscent of popular slasher movies. The perpetrators are not revealed until the end of the movie, turning the slasher into a whodunit movie as well. While each movie in the series features one or more killers wearing the series' signature Ghostface mask, their identities have been different every time. We can presume the familiar Ghostface mask will be back for Scream 5, and we'll see if they can once again surprise us with the reveal at the end.
Partly a satirization of slasher movies, the original Scream succeeded as both a horror movie and a self-aware spoof. Acknowledging some of the horror genre's most overused tropes, Scream flipped viewers' expectations by taking the story in the opposite direction. With so many years passing since we've seen Scream 4, the franchise has the opportunity to reinvent itself again if it takes some cues from the original and pokes some fun at what horror movies have become over the past several years.
Principal photography on Scream 5 will reportedly begin in the late summer of this year in Wilmington, North Carolina. Upon its release, Paramount will handle marketing and distributing for the sequel worldwide while Spyglass will do the same with select international territories. More casting announcements are expected to follow in the coming weeks. This news comes to us from Variety.