Trivia / Scream (2022)

• Acting in the Dark: The new cast members all stated that Radio Silence was extremely secretive about the true ending of the film during production, to the point where none of the new cast knew the final outcome, as explained here. This was likely done to avoid the leaks that afflicted Scream 2.
• Actor-Shared Background: This film reveals that Dewey and Gale went through a divorce after the events of Scream 4 just as David Arquette and Courteney Cox went through a divorce after filming Scream 4.
• Approval of God:
  • Considering this tweet, it's clear Rian Johnson liked being name-dropped in the film as the director of Stab 8.
  • Jamie Kennedy (Randy Meeks) gave a glowing review of the film. He also approved of Jasmin Savoy Brown's performance as his character's niece, Mindy.
• B-Team Sequel:
  • The film was made without the involvement of Wes Craven, who passed away in 2015.
  • Kevin Williamson didn't write the script, though he did serve as an executive producer.
  • Brian Tyler replaces Marco Beltrami (who scored the first four films) as the film's composer.
• California Doubling: The film is still set in a fictional California city, but was filmed in Wilmington, North Carolina.
• Cast the Runner-Up: Kyle Gallner initially auditioned for Richie, but lost out to Jack Quaid, which inspired his casting as Vince in the final product.
• Channel Hop: This film is distributed by Paramount Pictures after the first four films were released by Dimension Films (through Miramax and Disney for 1-3 and The Weinstein Company for 4).
• Darkhorse Casting: This was the film debut of French model Sonia Ben Ammar, playing Liv, who was only well known in France prior to this film.
• Dawson Casting: The 31-year-old Melissa Barrera plays the 24-year-old Sam. All of the teen characters are played by actors in their early to mid-20s, with the exception of Jenna Ortega, who was about the same age as her character during filming.
• Deleted Scene:
  • The bar scene would’ve introduced Dewey earlier in the film, getting attacked by Vince while (drunkenly) trying to break up the fight between him and Chad.
  • There was a scene where the teens and Dewey were investigated by Sheriff Hicks at the police station after Vince’s murder, a scene which is alluded to in the final product.
  • According to James Vanderbilt's Twitter, Judy originally unmasked her killer before dying, which is a homage to Casey doing the same in the first Scream.
  • The scene at the Hicks family residence after Wes and Judy are killed has Sam meeting Mindy outside the house and realizing that the killer is deviating from the “requel” formula.
• Development Gag: One of the deputies in the film is named Vinson, after one of the producers of Radio Silence’s previous film, Ready or Not.
• Fake American:
  • Liv's actress Sonia Ben Ammar is French.
  • Sam's actress Melissa Barrera is Mexican.
• Fan Nickname: Most fans ignore the film's Recycled Title and just call the film either "Scream 5" or "5cream" (pronounced "five cream").
• In Memoriam: Before the credits roll, the words "For Wes" appear.
• Irony as She Is Cast: James A. Janisse and Chelsea Rebecca of Dead Meat make a brief cameo. While in real life, they're known for their lighthearted and respectful yet honest discussion of horror films, their in-universe selves (fans that hated Stab 8) are full-on Caustic Critic-types, complaining about it just being called Stab, hating the flamethrower, and adding the hashtag #RedoStab8. They're even called "FILMFAILS".
• The Other Darrin:
  • In the Japanese dub, Martha Meeks goes from Yuka Tokumitsu, who retired from voice acting, to Kiyoko Yonekura.
  • In the Latin American Spanish dub, none of the voice actors of the returning characters from previous films returns here.
• Promoted Fanboy:
  • The directors of the film, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, were huge fans of the Scream franchise before they were officially attached. According to a letter they wrote Neve Campbell which helped convince her to sign on, the franchise (especially as overseen by Wes Craven) was the reason they began making horror films, and they were "blown away...at the idea of actually getting an opportunity to make [a Scream film]" and made it a priority "to honor and respect Wes’ vision".
  • Before being cast as Chad, Mason Gooding was a fan of the Scream franchise to the point of writing a six-page essay in college about why it was the one franchise that deserved a reboot. He wound up sending the essay to Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett as part of his audition process; several weeks later, he received a direct offer to be in the film.
• Queer Character, Queer Actor: Mindy is queer, like her actress Jasmin Savoy Brown.
• Reality Subtext: After Scream 4 was released, David Arquette split with Courteney Cox and went into treatment for alcoholism. Both elements were incorporated into Dewey's character for this film. Fortunately, in real life, he and Courteney are Amicable Exes.
• Refitted for Sequel: For the identity of the killers and their motive, the writers recycled Kevin Williamson's original concept for Scream 2 before it was leaked and he was forced to rewrite the ending completely. In his original script, the killers were going to be crazed Stab fans who manipulated their way into Sidney's life as her best friend (Hallie) and her boyfriend (Derek) for the sake of becoming famous. Similarly, this movie has Tara's best friend (Amber) and Sam's boyfriend (Richie) as the psychopathic Stab fans, albeit without the Fame Through Infamy motive.
• Role Reprise:
  • Neve Campbell, David Arquette, and Courteney Cox reprise their roles as Sidney Prescott, Dewey Riley, and Gale Weathers respectively from Scream 1-4, Skeet Ulrich reprises his role as Billy Loomis from the original Scream, Marley Shelton reprises her role as Judy Hicks from Scream 4, and Heather Matarazzo reprises her role as Martha Meeks from Scream 3. After the 2022 film released, Neve Campbell announced her refusal to reprise the role of Sidney in the forthcoming Scream VI, citing underpayment.
  • The same goes in the Japanese dub, as Michiko Neya (Sidney), Mitsuru Miyamoto (Dewey), Yuko Sasaki (Gale), Yuko Kaida (Judy), Jin Yamanoi (Ghostface) and Shin-ichiro Miki (Billy) returns here.
• Saved from Development Hell: A fifth Scream film was planned as far back as before the release of Scream 4, which was intended to be the start of a new trilogy. Wes Craven and Kevin Williamson were also contracted to do a fifth and sixth film. However, plans were put on hold when Scream 4 ended up underperforming, and The Weinstein Company decided to move the franchise to television. It's only after the company imploded in 2018 that things turned around, as the rights to the franchise were inherited by Spyglass Media Group, which immediately set about to produce a film.
• Separated-at-Birth Casting:
  • Melissa Barrera actually does look like◊ she could be the daughter of Skeet Ulrich, possessing a few of the same facial features.
  • Barrera and Jenna Ortega could also pass for siblings, as could Mason Gooding and Jasmin Savoy Brown, who play twins.
• Sequel Gap: Like the previous entry in the series, the film was released eleven years after the last installment in the franchise.
• Throw It In!: The line "I'm Sidney fucking Prescott, of course I have a gun" was added by Neve Campbell.
• Troubled Production: Compared with the rest of the series, the film got off relatively easy, though like many films shot in 2020, it was impacted by the COVID-19 Pandemic, which delayed the start of filming by four months from May 2020 to September. The film's red carpet premiere also had to be canceled due to the spread of the Omicron variant of the virus. Fortunately, it didn't affect the film itself, which was praised as a return to form and made almost as much money in its opening weekend as Scream 4 did in its entire North American theatrical run. Unfortunately, a salary dispute led to Neve Campbell refusing to reprise her role as Sidney for the sixth film.
• Voice-Only Cameo:
  • Drew Barrymore is the principal who makes announcements over the intercom at Woodsboro High.
  • Matthew Lillard voices "Chromeface" in the Stab 8 footage we see. He's also the partygoer who tells Amber, "Hey, Freeman, cool house!"
  • Jamie Kennedy is the guy informing Mindy that the party is being shut down by "somebody's goofy-ass dad."
  • Henry Winkler, Adam Brody, Hayden Panettiere, Marco Beltrami, and Wes Craven's widow, Iya Labunka, are all heard toasting Wes at the party.
• What Could Have Been:
  • In the original script, Tara and Amber were written as girlfriends.
  • Additionally, Chad dies in the original script, though he survives in the final film. The creators rewrote the character’s fate after meeting and casting Mason Gooding due to finding him so likable and charismatic that they immediately planned to keep him for any sequels, as much for themselves as for the audience.
  • The original script has a quick cameo by Mark Kincaid. Patrick Dempsey ultimately didn't reprise the role, so he is The Ghost in the final film.
  • Radio Silence stated in an interview that they intended for Rian Johnson to cameo in the film, but he was unavailable due to filming Glass Onion at the time. Instead, he got a passing shout-out in dialogue as the director of Stab 8.
  • Samara Weaving was originally considered for a role in the film, which would've reteamed her with Radio Silence after Ready or Not, but had to decline due to her commitment to filming Nine Perfect Strangers. However, Weaving would later be cast in the film’s sequel.
  • In the original script, Chad and Mindy's dad, Carlos Martinez (back when the twins’ surname was "Meeks-Martinez" rather than "Meeks-Martin"), was supposed to appear alongside Martha, but he is absent in the final movie.
  • Likewise, Sam and Tara's mother was initially still in town so that she would stand out more as a potential suspect.
  • Liv McKenzie’s surname was originally "Tate".

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