The official trailer for Scream 7 has arrived, teasing the return of Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott – but many fans aren’t impressed.

The actor first appeared in 1996’s Scream, before featuring in the sequels Scream 2 (1997), Scream 3 (2000), Scream 4 (2011) and 2022’s Scream. However, Campbell was absent from 2023’s Scream VI due to pay disputes.

Landing just in time for Halloween, the Scream 7 trailer sees the original Scream house being turned into a tourist attraction, while a new Ghostface hunts down Prescott.

“Hello, Sidney. Did you miss me?” the masked killer says over the phone to Campbell’s character, before warning Prescott that he is going to go after her daughter. “I’m not going to hurt her until you’re here to see it,” Ghostface adds.

[embed]https://youtube.com/watch?v=UJrghaPJ0RY&feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1[/embed]

The trailer also features Courteney Cox as Gale Weathers, and ends with a snippet of Matthew Lillard’s voice.

However, the first-look video has reignited backlash about Melissa Barrera – who led the previous two Scream films. The actor was fired from Scream 7 in 2023 after she posted on Instagram in support of Palestine. In response, many fans vowed to boycott the sequel. Barrera later spoke out on Campbell’s decision to return.

Following the star’s removal from the project, co-lead Jenna Ortega also announced that she would not be returning for Scream 7 due to scheduling conflicts.

Reacting to the Scream 7 trailer, one viewer wrote on X/Twitter: “This is missing two very important women.” Another posted a screenshot from the final moments of Scream VI, saying: “Where the Scream franchise ended for me.”

Someone else shared: “We will not be supporting because of what [production company] Spyglass did to Melissa Barrera!” Elsewhere, a fan urged people to instead watch Barrera’s upcoming film The Copenhagen Test. A separate tweet read: “Anyways, Your Monster (2024) starring Melissa Barrera is streaming on HBO Max and Hulu.”

Meanwhile, a social media user urged their followers to “boycott Scream 7 and support Scary Movie 6 instead”, with the next instalment of the parody franchise also due out in 2026.

 

Elsewhere, fans on YouTube and Reddit have been sharing their overall thoughts on the Scream 7 trailer. One branded the clip “kinda boring”, adding: “It looks fine, I guess.” Another wrote: “It looks alright… I guess… love Neve as Sydney [sic], but the trailer seems to show a lot for a teaser/first trailer than expected.”

Referring to the issues behind the scenes, they continued: “Still disappointed about the whole mess that happened with the making of this.” A third viewer said: “Hard to come up with a clever premise when they had to rewrite the entire script in like 2 weeks lol.”

Another comment read: “Fuck Spyglass.” A separate message said: “This looks awful. At least the last one looked exciting being in [New York]. Probably would’ve benefited from hiring a proper director cause a lot of shots here look bland.”

A user on YouTube posted: “Sydney [sic] and Ghostface might as well be in cahoots bc ts gone on enough.” Elsewhere in the replies, someone shared: “Cash grab final boss.”

Following Barrera’s firing from Scream 7, Campbell was offered the lead role once again and subsequently agreed to return. This came after “the studio heard me when I talked about pay discrepancy and when I talked about [Scream VI negotiations] not feeling respectful”.

It is currently unclear as to whether Scream 7 will serve as the final entry in the franchise. The trailer’s official log line reads: “Determined to protect her family, Sidney must face the horrors of her past to put an end to the bloodshed once and for all.”

Scream 7 is set to hit cinemas in the UK and US on February 27, 2026.

In a four-star review of Scream VI, NME wrote: “Scream VI isn’t perfect: the constant meta references (past killers, the ‘rules’ of the franchise) felt inventive in last year’s reboot, but here grow tiresome. There’s also a confusing subplot around Sam’s suppressed desire to emulate her dad (Billy Loomis, the original Ghostface), who appears in hallucinations telling her to murder people.

“Throw in the usual exposition sessions, which keep the viewer up to date on the plot but make it feel like a Gen Z Poirot, and it could all start to get on your nerves. Luckily, such is the sheer, bloody joy of the thing that you’ll be too preoccupied to notice. Maybe more horror baddies should move to New York?”

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