Summary

  • Scream 7 is confirmed to be in development with a new director, Christopher Landon, taking over from Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin.
  • The previous installment, Scream VI, achieved the highest domestic box office revenue for the franchise, leading to the decision to proceed with Scream 7.
  • Christopher Landon is known for directing successful horror films like Happy Death Day and Freaky.

Scream 7 is officially in development, and a new director will be taking over. In 2022, the fan-favorite slasher franchise was revived under the guidance of directing duo Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, who are part of the filmmaking collective known as Radio Silence. They directed both 2022's Scream and this year's Scream 6, which became the franchise's highest-grossing installment domestically.

Per The Hollywood Reporter, following rumors that swirled online earlier in the day, Scream 7 is officially moving forward. This time, however, Scream 7 will be directed by Christopher Landon, the filmmaker behind horror hits such as the Happy Death Day movies and Freaky. Radio Silence, which also includes producer Chad Villella, will remain on board as executive producers for the new movie.

Landon later reacted to the news, sharing a picture of Ghostface with the caption, "Looks like 7 really is a lucky number."

Why Christopher Landon Is A Solid Choice For The Scream Franchise

Ghostface holds up a knife in Scream VI

Scream 7 marks the third time that the Scream series has changed directors, an unusually low amount for such a long-running slasher franchise. Original director Wes Craven helmed the first four movies, which were released between 1996 and 2011, whereas Gillett and Bettinelli-Olpin took the reins for the following two movies. While that has allowed the series to remain largely consistent in of continuity and audience reception, Landon's presence should nevertheless keep Scream on track.

With his movies Happy Death Day and Freaky, Landon has already proven his ability to deconstruct the slasher genre, which is a key element of the Scream movies. In both of those projects, he blended elements of the classic slasher with new sci-fi subgenres, proving he knows the core components of the slasher inside and out. These movies also prove his ability to blend comedy and horror, the two tones that must be expertly combined to make a Scream movie work.

While his newer movies like Freaky and Netflix's We Have a Ghost have been more overtly comic, Landon also has the ability to scare audiences. He proved this with his 2014 movie Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones, which had some minor comic relief but otherwise focused entirely on the scares that Landon had worked to craft as a longtime screenwriter for the franchise. When Scream 7 is finally able to enter into production, it will be in the hands of a director who knows exactly what he's doing.

Source: THR