After taking over the franchise from the dearly departed Wes Craven for Scream 5 and 6, Radio Silence is stepping down from the director's chair for the franchise's seventh installment.
Instead The Hollywood Reporter exclusively revealed that Christopher Landon (Happy Death Day series, Freaky) has been tapped to direct the next Scream film.
Scream and Scream VI directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (Radio Silence) will remain on board as executive producers, as will Chad Villella.
The two recent movies, titled Scream and Scream VI, which were distributed by Paramount, scared up $137.7 million and $168.9 million worldwide, respectively, and introduced a fresher-faced cast to the bloody proceedings, among them Jenna Ortega, Melissa Barrera and Mason Gooding.
While the actors do not have deals for a new installment, they are expected to return once the dual writer and actor strikes are settled. THR states that Ortega’s deal will be one to watch, as the actress signed on to the franchise before she was catapulted to the A-list thanks to Netflix’s Wednesday.
Also unclear is who will be writing Scream 7. James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick wrote the scripts for the two recent movies. However, Landon is also an established screenwriter, having written or co-written all his directorial efforts, so most likely Landon will have a hand in script duties.
When I first heard the rumors a few months back that Radio Silence most likely won't be returning to direct due to filming their untitled monster film for Universal (which stars Scream 5 and 6 star Melissa Barrera), Christopher was my first choice as a replacement.
Even though his films have a cult following in the horror world, I am a fan of Christopher's work. I loved his films Happy Death Day, Scout's Guide to the Zombie Apocolypse, and I really enjoyed Freaky. I even have a soft spot for the even stranger Happy Death Day sequel.
He has a knack for balancing horror and comedy, and not only do I hope we get some strong queer characters besides Mindy added to the seventh installment, but I hope they're able to secure Neve Campbell to reprise her iconic role as Sidney.
Also, while I love the core four, I think it's time to get rid of the plot armor which I felt took me out of Scream VI at times. We have to raise the stakes going forward.
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