Matthew Lillard, who played Stu Macher in the original Scream movie, thinks the franchise has gotten too violent.

Although there have been some bumps in the road (to put it mildly), the Scream franchise is trucking forward with a seventh installment set to be directed by original Scream screenwriter Kevin Williamson. Matthew Lillard, who played Stu Macher in the first Scream movie, told GamesRadar+ that he believes the franchise is in a good place but that recent sequels have gotten “too violent.“

“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. In fact, I thought they were taking a really exciting way,” Lillard said. “I thought the movie got too violent. I think 6 was, like… I don’t think Ghostface ever needs a shotgun. 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. I hope that Kevin takes it in a brand new, brave, and exciting direction so that we can sort of find different colors and different joys.“

Lillard has also expressed a desire to return as Stu, who he believes isn’t dead. “Stu is definitely alive,” Lillard said. “That would be fun. I would love it. If it made sense, if it made sense for the franchise. If Kevin [Williamson] liked it, then sure.“

Scream 7 will see the return of Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott. She played the role in the first five Scream movies and was expected to return for the sixth until the studio low-balled her. “As a woman, I have had to work extremely hard in my career to establish my value, especially when it comes to Scream,” Campbell said. “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.” Hopefully they apologized with a dump truck of cash this time around. It’s also possible that Patrick Dempsey might be returning as well, reprising his role as Mark Kincad. Scream 7 is slated for a February 27, 2026 release.

As the first movie opened with a horrific murder and disembowelling, I don’t necessarily agree that the recent Scream movies are any more violent than they’ve always been. What do you think?