Horror movies have been thriving for a number of years now, which cinephiles have dubbed a renaissance for the genre. In addition to original concepts, some of the best horror movies returned to theaters via new sequels. That includes Wes Craven’s Scream, with the filmmakers from Radio Silence behind the camera for the two recent installments. And Scream VI’s directors recently defended changes to Ghostface, including the masked killer using a gun in the trailer. New city, new rules.
The 2022 Scream movie was helmed by Ready or Not filmmakers Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, who perfectly honored Wes Craven’s legacy with a new story set in Woodsboro. That sequel was such a success that Paramount quickly ordered the production of Scream VI, which is arriving in theaters next month. The trailer shocked some fans when Ghostface made an attack in a busy NYC bodega, disarming the owner and using his own shotgun against him. Speaking to SFX Magazine (via Digital Spy), Bettinelli-Olpin spoke about swinging hard with the killer, saying:
We don't want it to be safe. We don't want it to be boring. We want it to be fun and to raise eyebrows. When we heard 'Ghostface in New York and he has a shotgun' it was like: 'What?!' The two feelings of 'What are we doing?' and 'We have to do it!' are often intrinsically tied and that was a perfect example of that.
He’s not wrong. That sequence in Scream VI’s trailer is truly chilling, mostly because Ghostface is seemingly operating differently in the Big Apple. Rather than stalking in the shadows, he’s shown openly hunting Sam and Tara (Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega) through the streets of New York. Add in the sequence on the subway train, and it feels like the masked killer is going to be doing things differently this time around.
Later in the same interview, Tyler Gillett also spoke to the way that Scream VI will be using Ghostface than previous films. While the franchise has always contained both comedy and horror, it seems like the way the killer is used physically is going to be much more specific and terrifying for the sixth movie. As Gillett shared:
There are a ton of fun, wonderful, classic Ghostface moments, but it's not the pratfalling Ghostface. We love that, but for this to be scary and to achieve a level of visceral tension, we wanted to put the character more in the real world. If Ghostface is trying to get through a door, it's going to happen! There's no giving up. When he's in pursuit, the pursuit doesn't end until he's achieved his goal.
Does anyone else have chills? While the footage for Scream VI has been limited, it definitely highlighted just how terrifying this new form of Ghostface will be. New York City looks like it’s really going to help to raise the stakes of the horror in an interesting way, especially when the survivors are attacked in an apartment building and can’t just escape out of the window. As a reminder, you can check out the full trailer below:
Luckily for moviegoers, we won’t have to wait long before getting to see Scream VI in all of its glory. The highly anticipated sequel is just a few weeks away from its release, although there has been a misstep along the way. Ghostface’s identity was seemingly leaked online, leading to some fans having the movie spoiled. Although given the franchise’s penchant for filming extra footage and using fake scripts, it remains to be seen if the leak truly spoils the movie’s ending.
Scream VI is currently expected to arrive in theaters on March 10th. In the meantime, check out the 2023 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.
