Scream is returning to the big screen again with another installment to the franchise. However, the true horror might be that Neve Campbell, who played lead Sidney Prescott, will not return for Scream 6.
The first film in the franchise is considered a cult classic in the horror film genre. It even gave birth to the Ghostface mask still worn by trick-or-treaters on Halloween.
Scream had its blockbuster debut in 1996. Several sequels have been made since, all featuring Sidney Prescott. Campbell’s name has been associated with the franchise since its debut and it cemented her name in the horror genre.
However, Campbell was not exclusively working on the Scream franchise. She also worked on other movies across genres. But she’s most known for her “scream queen” status thanks to the epic slasher flicks. The actress is also one of the first “final girls” in horror films—a title given to the girl that outlives everyone in slasher movies.
That is why her exit from the sixth and newest movie in the franchise will be felt deeply by horror fans who connected the films to her. The actress revealed her decision in an interview, explaining that even though she’s sad about departing from the series, maybe forever, it was something she decided after feeling “undervalued” for her work on the franchise. She said the compensation for the next film was not what she had expected after her quarter-of-a-century work on the franchise. “I did not feel that what I was being offered equated to the value that I bring to this franchise, and have brought to this franchise, for 25 years.”
Campbell also opened up about feeling undervalued because she is a woman. She stated that if she were a man doing the work on the same blockbuster franchise for almost three decades, she would have been offered a higher compensation for the next movie. The actress mentioned that as a woman in show business, she learned her value, and the new movie’s pay fell short of her standard. Campbell is not alone in her sentiments as more and more women speak out about unfair compensation for the same work men do in Hollywood over the years. The Scream actress is just the latest addition to the bunch.
But even though Campbell broke the news of her exit, she assured Scream fans that the decision was purely about negotiations. She had no ill will about other aspects of the franchise. She gushed that she loved portraying Sidney and she is heartbroken to be moving on.
Currently, Campbell is working on new shows like “The Lincoln Lawyer” with Netflix. So even if fans will miss her in Scream 6, they can continue supporting her other projects.