“Scream 8” moving forward with writers behind canceled “Buffy” revival
“Scream 8” moving forward with writers behind canceled “Buffy” revival
Wesley StenzelTue, March 31, 2026 at 10:15 PM UTC
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Sarah Michelle Gellar in 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer; Ghostface in 'Scream 7'Credit: ROBERT VOETS/UPN; Jessica Miglio/Paramount Pictures
The Scream franchise is bringing in new blood for its eighth installment.
Nora Zuckerman and Lilla Zuckerman will write the screenplay for Scream 8, Entertainment Weekly has learned. Deadline first reported the news. Kevin Williamson, who directed Scream 7 and wrote four of the series' installments including the 1996 original, will not return to pen Scream 8.
Lilla Zuckerman and Nora Zuckerman in Los Angeles on April 14, 2024Credit: Tommaso Boddi/Variety via Getty
The Zuckerman sisters recently served as the showrunners for Peacock's Poker Face. They previously worked on shows like Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Prodigal Son, Suits, Haven, Human Target, and Fringe. Scream 8 will mark their first theatrical film project, though Nora wrote the 2008 TV movie Nightmare at the End of the Hall.
The Zuckermans' names also should sound familiar to Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans, as they were heavily involved with the show's now-shelved revival, New Sunnydale. The siblings penned and executive produced the pilot for the proposed Hulu series, which brought Sarah Michelle Gellar back to play the title role and featured Nomadland Oscar winner Chloé Zhao in the director's chair. However, Hulu ultimately pulled the plug on the project after production on the pilot was completed.
The Zuckermans will be the first women to write for the Scream film series, which has primarily revolved around female protagonists like Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) and Sam Carpenter (Melissa Barrera).
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Scream 7 was originally set to star Barrera and Jenna Ortega, who were both introduced in 2022's Scream (the fifth installment). However, Barrera was fired after expressing her views about the Israel-Hamas war, and Ortega exited the film because "it was all kind of falling apart." Director Christopher Landon then departed the project after the cast shake-up.
Neve Campbell in 'Scream 7'Credit: Jessica Miglio/Paramount Pictures
After all of those developments, Campbell — who sat out Scream VI due to a pay dispute — announced that she and Williamson were returning to the franchise with Scream 7.
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Despite garnering the worst reviews of the series by a significant margin (it currently holds a 31% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 35/100 score on MetaCritic), Scream 7 is now the highest-grossing entry in the franchise with over $200 million at the global box office to date.
on Entertainment Weekly
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
