Filming of the next entry to the Scream franchise is slated to begin this month, but apparently it will be doing so without the series’ main star. Neve Campbell officially announced today that she won’t be returning to her role as final girl Sidney Prescott in the next installment, stating that the decision ultimately came down to a monetary one. Speaking with Deadline, Campbell confirmed:
“Sadly I won’t be making the next Scream film. As a woman, I have had to work extremely hard in my career to establish my value, especially when it comes to Scream. I felt the offer that was presented to me did not equate to the value I have brought to the franchise. It’s been a very difficult decision to move on. To all my Scream fans, I love you. You’ve always been so incredibly supportive to me. I’m forever grateful to you and to what this franchise has given me over the past 25 years.”
This year’s Scream film was a hit at not only at the box office, but with critics and audiences alike. The fifth installment received some of the strongest reviews of the series since 1997’s Scream 2, and still retains a 76% positive review rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Even though this year’s film shifted the focus from Campbell’s character to newer members of the franchise, having her and OG cast members David Arquette and Courteney Cox were crucial to it’s success.
It’s unclear why filmmakers, who were so concerned about bringing Campbell back for the fifth installment, would then allow anyone to disrespect the main star of the franchise by not paying her what she felt like she was worth. The upcoming sequel does have a bit of a bloated cast, with franchise vets Courteney Cox, Hayden Panettiere, and several cast members from Scream 5 returning. However, Campbell IS the Scream franchise. As great as all these others characters are, making a sequel without her would be box office suicide. This should be a no-brainer for the people behind the scenes to have given her what she wants and then work with the rest of the cast on sequel negotiations. After all, just like Scream 5‘s script said, you can’t have Halloween without Jamie Lee. And you certainly can’t have a reputable Scream sequel without it’s main star. Here’s hoping the studio comes to it’s senses and makes things right with Campbell in time for at least a cameo appearance.
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