Scream 6 wasn't changed because of Neve Campbell's exit
Scream VI wasn't changed by Neve Campbell's exit, according to the team behind the movie.
Fans of the slasher franchise were left disappointed last year when it was revealed that Campbell would not be reprising her role as Sidney Prescott in the sixth instalment.
The actress has pretty much been the face of the franchise since 1996 (aside from Ghostface, of course), and she was meant to feature in the newest film... until the studio presented her with an offer that she felt just wasn't up to scratch. ("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," she said).
Related: Scream 6 directors respond to backlash over Ghostface change
But, with two new final girls in Melissa Barrera's Sam and Jenna Ortega's Tara, the creative team behind Scream VI have now revealed that little needed to be changed to the movie after Campbell's departure.
"This was always the story we wanted to tell, which is really exciting we were able to do it," writer James Vanderbilt told Variety. "The Sam and Tara sister story was always the thing we wanted to be front and centre in this.
"We love Neve and think she’s amazing and had a great experience with her on 5. She needs to do what she needs to do as a business woman and we totally support that."
Directors Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin also weighed in, explaining how Campbell's exit was early enough to avoid reshoots, and that her absence encouraged them to further explore the relationships between the "core four".
"Credit to the script, which was structurally solid and changed very little. There wasn’t a huge pivot," said Gillett.
"I think what ultimately happened was we knew that if anything, in the absence of that character, we had to really dig deeper into the core four and make those relationships matter in a really emotional way."
Related: Scream 6's Jenna Ortega guessed who the new Ghostface was
The filmmaker continued: "The goal was to try to form a connection between those characters and the audience the way that we formed a connection with Gale [Courtney Cox], Dewey [David Arquette] and Sid.
"At the end of the day, that’s just about having the time and the real estate in your story to really dig deep. But no, it wasn’t a wildly dramatic pivot."
Scream VI is out now in UK cinemas.
You Might Also Like
