Summary
- Scream 7 originally planned to conclude Sam and Tara's story in a dark way, igniting Sam's inner darkness.
- Neve Campbell's Sidney Prescott was sidelined in Scream 7's original plan, with a focus on the Carpenter sisters instead.
- Christopher Landon was heavily involved in Scream 7's production, with casting and location scouting already underway before Barrera's firing..
Scream 7 is moving forward with Kevin Williamson as the director, with the focus shifting back onto Neve Campbell's iconic final girl, Sidney Prescott, after her absence in Scream 6. However, this wasn't always the plan for Scream 7, with Sam and Tara Carpenter's story initially set to be the focus until Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega's exits. It has now been revealed what the exact plans were for Scream 7, and it was set to be an ultra-dark conclusion to the Carpenter sisters' arc.
Scream 6 was the highest-grossing sequel in the Scream franchise, with an impressive return of $169.1 million at the global box office. This led to the announcement that Scream 7 was in the works, and Guy Busick and James Vanderbilt were hired to pen the script. Christopher Landon was also hired to direct the sixth sequel after Radio Silence duo Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett had to pass on completing their Scream trilogy as they were busy working on the vampire horror Abigail. Landon left the project after the controversy surrounding Melissa Barrera's firing, and the fans never got to see what Scream 7 initially had in store for them.
The Original Plan For Scream 7 Would've Been A Great Conclusion To Sam and Tara's Story
The writer's strike had caused a bit of a delay in the production of Scream 7, but a lot of preparation was still going on behind the scenes for the sixth sequel. However, after Melissa Barrera's firing and Jenna Ortega's departure due to scheduling issues, the plans for Scream 7 were scrapped. YouTuber Behind The Mask has now revealed what the plans were for Scream 7, and by the sounds of it, it would've been great.
Scream 7 was going to see the franchise conclude the story of Sam and Tara in what was pitched as the climax to the Carpenter sisters story.
The plan was always for Sam's story to be a three-movie arc, so it makes perfect sense that Scream 7 was set to be the conclusion to the franchise. Beyond The Mask elaborated on the initial plans in his video 'The Original Scream 7 Plans (before Melissa Barrera was fired)':
The entire movie's focus was going to be with Sam. She was the major player and the core four as a group took a backseat. Her and Tara weren't as close in the initial pitch for 7.
Many fans will probably be disappointed to hear that The Core Four weren't set to be the main focus in Scream 7. However, Scream 6 already told that story, and it was probably time to move in a different direction. Also, it was hinted at in Scream 6 that Scream 7's Sam and Tara plans might see them go their separate ways, with the elder sibling needing to let go of her younger sister so she could flourish on her own. However, the next revelation about the initial plans for Scream 7 would've taken a very dark but necessary turn:
Tara was to be killed off and a pattern of events that followed would see Sam spiral completely and that was the major pitch for 7.
Part of the reason for Tara being killed off was because of Jenna Ortega's scheduling conflicts. Apparently, the plan was always to have Ortega take a less central role because of this, but it did facilitate the actualization of Sam's darkness, which was teased in Scream 6.
The Killers' main motive was to outwardly expose Sam's internal darkness, but more so, to awaken it inside of her.
The Ghostface killer in Scream 7 was set to try and rile Sam up, so her psychopathic tendencies boiled over to the surface, and Tara's death was set to ignite that. Sam and Tara's mother, Christina Carpenter, was also set to finally appear in the franchise after she was mentioned in Scream (2022) and Scream 6, but it wasn't clear what her character would be getting up to in Scream 7, but reading between the lines, it is possible she could've been Ghostface. There are also hints that Sam might've ended up being one of the killers as well, and that would've been an interesting way to go.
There were also plans to try to coax Neve Campbell back to play Sidney Prescott, but this wasn't considered a priority, with the Carpenter sister's story still being the main focus. This aspect of the plan for Scream 7 is probably the weakest idea, as it's difficult to see where the iconic final girl would fit into this story. The original plan for Sidney in Scream 6 was very poor, and Scream 7's current plans to focus on her are much better than a likely supporting role in Sam and Tara's final story. Beyond the Mask also revealed the plans for other returning characters:
They wanted Gale involved and also pitched for a role for Kirby too. The Meeks-Martin twins were included, and Danny became an honorary member of the core four.
Scream 7 was set to be a fitting conclusion to the story set up in Scream (2022) and Scream 6, but nobody really knows if the final movie would've lived up to its potential.
Christopher Landon Has Revealed More Information About How Far Along Production Was For Scream 7
In closing, Beyond The Mask revealed in his video that he'd reached out to Christopher Landon to find out exactly how far along the plans were for Scream 7, and he elaborated on the response he got from the horror director:
His version of Scream 7 was so far into production that the rough draft of the movie does exist. He was heavily involved in what the plan was for 7. Casting had begun, and they had also begun scouting for locations already by the time Melissa was fired.
Christopher Landon is a great director, and it's highly likely Scream 7 would've been great under his leadership. But sadly, fans will likely never get to see this particular Scream movie he had started working on. Having said that, Scream 7 has moved in a different direction and appears to be in safe hands with the original creator, Kevin Williamson, and the ultimate Scream queen, Neve Campbell. Maybe one day, when the dust settles on all the issues that plagued the production of the original Scream 7, fans will get to see the completion of Sam and Tara Carpenter's story.
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