Does the Scream Franchise Still Need Sidney?
Scream VI has just hit the cinema and is being received as one of the strongest additions to the franchise. However, one of the biggest talking points before the film was Neve Campbell’s involvement or lack of involvement. While this was down to a pay dispute, the movie went on without her. This isn’t going to be a discussion on who is in the right for the stance. We are going to be looking at whether the character of Sidney is needed for the franchise.
THIS DOES CONTAIN FULL SPOILERS FOR SCREAM VI For the Normal Review Click here
Does the Scream Franchise Still Need Sidney?
Sidney’s Family
One of the major factors it would be incredibly difficult to bring Sidney back is that she has a young family. When we look at the franchise in full, no character that has pre-teenager children has been targeted by a Ghostface. Sidney does deserve to have a happy life instead of another showdown with a Ghostface killer.
This doesn’t mean she couldn’t return in the future, but with the franchise flying high. It does feel like it could go on for plenty of films down the line. Sidney could be a prime return when her own children are teenagers and become a target for the Ghostface killers.
The Core Four
One of the many welcome additions in Scream VI was the introduction of Chad’s awkwardly named Core Four. This is Sam, Tara, Mindy and Chad, the four survivors from Scream 2022. The introduction of this name gives us a welcome unit between them, proving they could easily be the four leads going forward in the franchise without the legacy characters. They each have a unique personality trait and most importantly have been able to become fan favourites in the space of just two movies.
Sam’s DNA
Sam had the most interesting character development in any of the Scream movies. Between the events of Scream 2022 and Scream VI a corner of the internet has created a conspiracy that she was in fact the killer because of her family connection to Billy Loomis. This is seen with who the killers are, Richie’s family. Sam has now been involved in killing four members of one family and her violent side is clear to see.
We learn that she stabbed Richie 22 times before slicing his throat. This time we see her relentless stabbing obsession coming through once again dealing with his father Detective Bailey. The action in both movies has been inspired by her connection to Billy along with her visions of him. She left the movie with a blank expression, showing a much colder calculated side to what she is capable of. The movie could easily continue to build the conspiracy about her danger to society and how the internet wants to be the judge of everything.
Sam has so much more to give this franchise and we could go in so many different directions. She could even become an eventually Ghostface, being the first returning character that could become one. This could see her targeting people that have stopped her from getting opportunities in life because of their rumours.
Sidney’s Position
We mentioned that it could be difficult for Sidney because of her family status right now. Well, even without her family, the franchise has got to a situation where it is Sidney overcomes a wannabe killer. While she was the face of the franchise, unlike Laurie in Halloween, who faces up the same killer.
Sidney ends up needing to build a relationship with the killers that don’t always connect. Her position in the film is the one that stops the killer or could end up being the one that finally gets killed off. There would be too much of a spotlight put on her involvement in the movie to help the franchise grow enough going forward.
Legacy Characters Involvement
Scream VI did an excellent job with how it handled the legacy characters. Gale Weathers introduced the museum to Ghostface but was pushed out by the Core Four because of her greedy ways. She still has an involvement, but she doesn’t get involved in the final showdown.
On the other hand, Kirby Reed brings a level of authority with her position in the FBI. She has a connection to Sam from school as they understand what they have been through. They both got stabbed by the person they loved and have looked to overcome their scars. She seems to know how people have been getting involved with following and worshipping Ghostface.
The Fake-Out Opening
Scream VI follows a Scream tradition of having a surprising opening attack. This time we see two rookie wannabe Ghostface getting their first kill in New York and casually walking away. It shows that the franchise has now created Ghostfaces that are most interested in targeting people that have wronged them. There is no interest in hunting down Sidney this time, with this being the first time in the franchise’s history Sidney hasn’t been the target.
Final Thoughts on whether the Scream Franchise Still Needs Sidney
In conclusion, Scream VI took huge steps to help the franchise move in a different direction with Sidney. In the past, Halloween moved forward without Laurie Strode and managed to get three films out of the franchise. The franchise also managed to bring her back later, so there could be a chance to bring her back in the future. I personally have started to get a connection to the Core Four and want to see how they handle everything going forward.
Do You Think the Scream Franchise Still Needs Sidney?
Related
- Looking at the Ghostface Killers Motivations in Scream
- January 5, 2022
- In "Discussion Piece"
- 9 Wild Predictions for Scream 6
- February 20, 2023
- In "Discussion Piece"
- 7 Talking Points After Seeing Scream VI
- March 9, 2023
- In "Discussion Piece"
