Build Up to Scream 7

*Spoilers for Scream (2022) and Scream VI Ahead*

With the excitement of the newest installment of the Scream franchise coming out on February 27th of this year, many fans are preparing to buy tickets to see Scream 7. But how did we get here? What did the prior films have that set up this new movie? Well grab your popcorn and your favorite scary movie. It’s time to look back at the events of the last two Scream franchise movies. 

Scream (2022) Recap

In Scream (2022) also known as Scream 5, the story follows Samantha Carpenter as she is stalked by a brand new Ghostface killer. The masked killer visits Samantha's half sister, Tara Carpenter, attacking her and breaking her leg. But surprisingly, Tara survives and is taken to the hospital. Samantha goes to visit her half sister and brings along her boyfriend Richie Kirsch. 

This hospital happens to be located in the town where the events of the original Scream, Woodsboro. While visiting, Ghostface attacks but is able to get away. Not long after that, Samantha finally tells her half sister that she’s the daughter of Billy Loomis, One of the original Ghostface killers. After leaving the hospital and Ghostface dealing with some loose ends, Samantha and Richie visit a legacy character in the Scream franchise: Deputy Dwight "Dewey" Riley. 

He explains the rules of surviving a scary movie. These rules are as follows:

• Never trust your love interest.

• The killer always has something to do with the past.

• The first victim always has a circle of friends that the killer is a part of.

He would originally deny helping the two with their Ghostface problem, but after calling the original Ghostface target, Sidney Prescott, he reluctantly tries to help. Not long after that, Ghostface visits the home of Woodsboro Sheriff Judy Hicks and attacks her and her son. 

Dewey goes to inspect the crime scene where every cop is on duty, leaving Tara exposed to another Ghostface attack. Just before Ghostface was able to finish Tara off, Dewey and Samantha stop the killer with a gun shot. As Tara, Samantha, and Richie – who was also attacked by Ghostface – leave the hospital, Dewey stays behind to make sure this masked murderer is dead. Ghostface then attacks and kills Dewey. 

Upon learning that Dewey was dead and meeting with news reporter and author Gale Weathers, another legacy character, Sidney meets Samantha and creates a plan to draw out the killer. Samantha refuses this idea and plans to leave Woodsboro with her boyfriend and half sister. Before they drive away, Sidney slips a tracker into their car. She follows the car to the house of the second original Ghostface, Stu Macher. 

As the night continues, more attacks happen and Samantha is able to fend off Ghostface. It is revealed that one of the masked killers was Amber Freeman, a friend of Tara’s, after she fakes being hurt to shoot at Gale. But there is never only one Ghostface. There is always an accomplice. It is then revealed that Richie was also a Ghostface. They reveal that they did all this to create “new source material” for the in-universe movie franchise “Stab,” based on the previous Scream movies. The Stab films were made based on the stories from reporter Gale Weathers and her version of the Woodsboro massacres. As Amber goes to find Tara, Richie gets overpowered by Samantha and Sidney. Amber returns and Sidney and Gale fight her off as Samantha and Richie fight. 

Gale shoots Amber, who gets set on fire by the kitchen stove. While it looks like Samantha has finally lost, Richie taunts her saying that she’s the villain and that the villain dies in the end. Just before he deals the final blow, Samantha grabs the knife Amber dropped and strikes back, killing Richie and regrouping with Sidney and Gale. In a last-ditch effort, a scarred Amber charges at the group, with half her face burned and screaming, only to be shot by an offscreen Tara.

Scream VI (2023) Recap

Scream VI begins with university film professor Laura Crane being attacked by one of her students, Jason Carvey, who dressed up as Ghostface, planning to finish off the film Richie Kirsch began with his roommate. Jason also plots to kill Samantha and Tara Carpenter. He gets a phone call from another Ghostface that he assumes is his roommate. Little does he know, his roommate is actually dead in the refrigerator. Not long after finding his roommate, Ghostface attacks Jason and ends him with a slash. 

We then move on to learn that Samantha and Tara have now moved to New York City with fellow survivors Chad and Mindy Meeks-Martin. We also get to meet Quinn Bailey, roommate to Samantha and Tara, Mindy’s girlfriend Anika Kayoko, and Chad’s roommate Ethan Landry, who all attend Blackmore University. Since the last film ended, Samantha has been attending therapy while being publicly ostracized due to a conspiracy that claims that she planned out the earlier movie’s killings, and framed Richie for them. 

Not long after, Samantha gets taken to the police department for questioning. The officer who questions her just so happens to be Detective Wayne Bailey, Quinn’s father. He reveals that Samantha’s ID was found next to the body of Jason Carvey, along with the Ghostface mask used by Richie Kirsch and Amber Freeman. While walking with Tara to the station, Samantha gets a phone call from Richie’s number and its speaker is Ghostface, calling her a liar and planning to reveal her true nature. 

While the two are distracted, Ghostface attacks Tara and chases them into a nearby bodega. Upon entering, Ghostface kills several bystanders and takes the shop owner's shotgun. The masked killer begins to stalk Samantha and Tara throughout the bodega until the police show up, escaping through the back door and leaving the Ghostface mask of Jill Roberts and Charlie Walker, the Ghostfaces of Scream 4. 

While at the police station, the two meet FBI special agent Kirby Reed, a former survivor of Scream 4’s killing spree, along with Gale Weathers, who tells everyone that Sidney Prescott has gone into hiding with her family (this would be the set up for Scream 7). After that, Ghostface goes to visit Dr. Stone, Samantha’s therapist, kills him, steals Samantha’s medical file, and leaves the mask of the Ghostface in Scream 3, Roman Bridger. 

Ghostface then attacks Samantha and Tara’s friend group in Samantha’s apartment, killing Quinn and Anika and leaving the mask of Mickey Altieri, the second Ghostface of Scream 2. Detective Wayne is taken off the case due to his daughter's death, vowing to seek revenge. Gale then takes the group to a Ghostface shrine inside of an old cinema, where every Ghostface outfit and weapon resides. Later that night, Gale gets a call from Ghostface, mocking the death of Dewey Riley, killing her boyfriend, and then attacking her. Just before the final blow, Samantha and Tara show up to scare off the killer. 

The group then plans to meet up with Kirby Reed at the old cinema and trap Ghostface. While on the way there, Mindy is attacked on the subway but survives. Upon Samantha getting to the cinema, she gets a vision of her father, Billy Loomis, where he reminds Samantha to defend herself. She picks up her father’s knife, with Billy’s vision jokingly saying that it’s his favorite. 

The group then realizes that they are all locked inside the cinema. Detective Wayne then calls saying that Kirby Reed had been fired from the FBI due to mental instability months before. Two Ghostfaces then burst out and brutally attack Chad Meeks-Martin. As Samantha and Tara begin to run away, they run into Detective Wayne and Kirby with guns drawn. Wayne shoots Kirby and reveals himself as one of the Ghostfaces. The other two masked killers are then revealed to be Ethan Bailey and the still-alive Quinn Bailey. They orchestrated all these events to get revenge for their other family member, Richie Kirsch. 

Samantha and Tara begin to fight the Bailey family. Tara fights Ethan and Samantha fights Quinn, both being defeated. Samantha then dons the Ghostface robe and mask of her father, making one final phone call to Detective Bailey, using the voice changer used by every Ghostface before her. She then walks up to the Detective and finishes off her final stalker. Just before the cops arrive at the cinema shrine, Ethan makes one more attempt at Samantha and Tara, only to have the TV that fell on Stu Macher all those years ago – as seen in the very first Scream – fall on his head and kill him. Kirby then stated, “I saw that in a scary movie once.” As the movie ends, Samantha looks down at the mask her father wore, before dropping it and walking away, rejecting her murderous family history. 

Stay Tuned for Scream 7

So what do these movies have to do with Scream 7? During the sixth film, we learned that Sidney Prescott has fled with her family to get away from the new Ghostfaces. But since Sidney is shown to be in the next movie, and we visit what seems to be her new home, it’s fair to say that Sidney isn’t out of the picture just yet. Matthew Lillard will also be returning to the Scream franchise in his role as Stu Macher, one of the original Ghostfaces. It seems Sidney's past has come back once again to haunt her. 

You watch Scream 7 in theaters on February 27th. And if you live on campus, you can visit the Cinépolis in Mansfield near the Shoprite on 1965 State Route 57.