Every classic horror film has a ‘face’ for its franchise, such as Robert Englund of the Nightmare on Elm Street series and Jamie Curtis Lee in the Halloween films. For the ‘90s meta slasher film Scream, Neve Campbell put on consistently strong performances as Sidney Prescott.
Campbell has been the face of the Scream films from 1996 to 2022, but it has been reported that she will not be participating in the sixth installation of the series. She explained that the offer she was given did not feel equal to the value she brought to the franchise.
“Sadly, I won’t be making the next Scream film,” Campbell said. “As a woman, I have had to work extremely hard in my career to establish my value, especially when it comes to Scream. I felt the offer that was presented to me did not equate to the value I have brought to the franchise.”
“It’s been a very difficult decision to move on,” she continued. “To all my Scream fans, I love you. You’ve always been so incredibly supportive to me. I’m forever grateful to you and to what this franchise has given me over the past 25 years.”
The latest addition to the Scream franchise cost $25 million to make, but it more than doubled its tally at the worldwide box office.
Although Neve Campbell did not specify the offer she was given, the actress mentioned a conversation she had with scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis in 2020, saying the pay was not up to par with men’s salary in smash hit franchises.
The actress also said that while she fared well with Scream 3, she did not get a back-end deal, wherein Campbell would have benefited from the movie’s profits.
While Scream 6 will be without its star actress, it will welcome Scream 4’s Hayden Panettiere and several faces from the latest installment, including Jenna Ortega, Melissa Barrera, Jasmin Savoy Brown, and Mason Gooding.
The iconic slasher film actress currently appears on the Netflix series The Lincoln Lawyer. Additionally, she is set to take a recurring role in Peacock’s Twisted Metal, joining the likes of Anthony Mackie, Stephanie Beatriz, and Thomas Haden Church.
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