The Scream franchise has proven to be one of the horror genre’s most enduring properties. In the nearly 30 years since it began, the series has produced six films and a spinoff TV show that lasted three seasons on MTV. Across its various sequels and spinoffs, the franchise hasn’t deviated all that much from its original formula of meta jokes, third-act twists, and gruesome kills, either. It has instead tried to consistently elevate the stakes of its stories and the violence of its set pieces.
One of the franchise’s original stars, however, seems to think that it went a little too far in its most recent outing. Stu Macher actor Matthew Lillard said as much in an interview with GamesRadar, in which he shared his opinion on the franchise’s recent Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett-directed sequels (2022’s Scream and 2023’s Scream VI) and the news that Scream screenwriter Kevin Williamson will be returning to direct the franchise’s forthcoming seventh film installment.
“I think it’s in a good place. I think that [the movie being] back in the hands of Kevin Williamson is great. I love what [Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin] were doing before. Nothing against them,” Lillard told the outlet. “I thought the movie got too violent. I think [Scream VI] was, like … I don’t think Ghostface ever needs a shotgun.”
Lillard is, of course, referring to the moment in Scream VI when one of the film’s Ghostface killers hunts sisters Sam (Melissa Barrera) and Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega) in a New York City bodega with a shotgun. The scene in question has remained a controversial point of debate among the franchise’s fans ever since it was featured in one of the first trailers for Scream VI. Lillard, in other words, isn’t alone in his dislike of the franchise’s recent deviation from Ghostface’s usual, knife-wielding ways, though both 2022’s Scream and 2023’s Scream VI received largely positive reviews from both casual viewers and critics alike when they were released.
In the same interview with GamesRadar, Lillard went on to express some hope for the franchise’s future and, specifically, Williamson’s ability to reinvent the franchise that he helped create. “I think that the movies are – everything is trying to repeat what we did in the first movie in a lot of ways. Like, a maniacal monologue at the end. It’s really hard to do,” Lillard noted. “I hope that Kevin takes it in a brand new, brave, and exciting direction.”
Scream 7 is currently set to hit theaters on February 27, 2026.
Some of the best shots in Grok Imagine’s AI-made Odyssey don’t contain actors. Ancient landscapes stretch into the distance. Close-ups of grimy hands suggest people who have touched something rougher than a keyboard. For a few seconds, the illusion holds.
https://twitter.com/imagine/status/2113712964419063911
YouTube videos could soon look better without eating quite so much data, right? Thankfully, the platform plans to introduce a new video format called AV2 on its web player in early 2027, promising more efficient streaming and potentially fewer playback hiccups on slower internet connections. The big headline is a roughly 30% improvement in compression efficiency over AV1, YouTube's existing video format. That doesn't guarantee every video will use 30% less data, but it could make streaming a little easier on both internet connections and data allowances.
What is AV2, and why should viewers care?
YouTube is changing how its Home page works, giving viewers more control over what shows up there and making some of the app’s most-used sections easier to reach. Custom Feeds are now replacing the existing topic chips for eligible users, while YouTube is also testing a redesigned top bar on mobile that moves Subscriptions closer to the Home feed.
YouTube first started experimenting with Custom Feeds earlier this year, letting you type out what you wanted to watch and turning that request into its own stream of recommendations. Now, the feature is starting to look less like a side experiment and more like something YouTube actually wants people to use as part of their everyday Home page.