Scream 5 is finally legitimate, but here’s how it could still mess up

Scream 5 is finally something we’ll count as a real Scream movie…for now

When Scream 5 was first announced, some of us who had loved the franchise of horror movies since its first appearance in 1996 had reservations. The original director, Wes Craven, was no longer alive to create that special horror something; and writer Kevin Williamson wasn’t initially on board either.

But then something started to happen to turn “oh, dear God, why” into “huh. Maybe.” Familiar faces, like David Arquette and Courteney Cox started signing on. Suddenly, it was at least slightly possible that Ghostface’s latest string of murders would be worth looking forward to after all.

There was, however, one vitally important piece of the Woodsboro puzzle missing: Sidney Prescott. Sidney and Ghostface go together like Michael Myers and Laurie Strode. Just like any Halloween film without Jamie Lee Curtis is an illegitimate mess, anything that wants to call itself a Scream sequel had better include Neve Campbell.

Neve Campbell is back for Scream 5 and we have just one rule

Thankfully, Campbell’s return as Sidney is now official, making Scream 5 seem more like a legitimately exciting slasher than ever. That leaves just one possible way the latest edition of the horror franchise could be a major, epic fail: killing Sidney Prescott.

There has been a certain amount of social media discourse that doesn’t seem to recall one of the most satisfying parts of Scream 4: a snarky throwback to the original film. Anyone who has seen Scream knows there are certain rules for surviving horror movies, and the scene where Randy Meeks delivered the full list is unforgettable.

Equally unforgettable was the moment when Sidney gave her cousin a lesson of her own:

"You forgot the first rule of remakes, Jill. Don’t f*** with the original."

After gathering all the ingredients necessary to follow the “very simple formula,” for creating a great Scream sequel or remake, Scream 5 could still be a disaster if the writers listen to the folks who are new here and actually want to see Sidney dead by the end of the film. You don’t kill a slasher flick’s Final Girl. It’s just a rule.

Update the survival rules however you must for the planned 2022 release. Things have certainly changed since the last chapter in the series, after all. But if anyone involved in Scream 5 thinks that Sidney’s rule for remakes doesn’t still hold, well…Even the most super-human Ghostface of them all won’t be able to withstand the backlash.

Ending Sidney Prescott’s reign as sole survivor would be like spitting in the face of everyone who has followed her for all these years. As far as franchises go, that would be the equivalent of Scream 5 saying it will be right back before investigating a strange noise.

Or, to put it another way, it would be even stupider than sending the franchise running up the stairs when it should be running out the front door. It’d be insulting.

Are you looking forward to Scream 5 now that Neve Campbell is involved?