Here’s What The Stars Of The Scream Movies Have Worn On The Red Carpet Over The Years

Here’s What The Stars Of The “Scream” Movies Have Worn On The Red Carpet Over The Years

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Seeing the cast all dolled up on the red carpet had us feeling nostalgic, so we went back to see what Neve Campbell, David Arquette, Courteney Cox, and the other stars of the first four movies wore to the premieres. (Warning: Some of these looks are a bit chaotic — looking at you, Skeet Ulrich!)

‘It was nice to play some real emotion’: Courteney Cox, Neve Campbell dish on ‘Scream’ legacy

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Neve Campbell will forever be haunted by Ghostface, and she’s totally cool with that.

The actress gets a load of the slasher antagonist on the regular even when she’s not actually going toe-to-toe with the masked villain of the “Scream” movies, from the 1996 meta-horror original to the fifth installment hitting theaters Friday.

“I don’t know that it’ll ever not be trippy, opening my door to Ghostface every year (on Halloween) or having my kids see Ghostface and knowing I’m a part of it,” Campbell says.

Her character Sidney Prescott was a teenager when she survived the original Woodsboro Murders as the primary target of Ghostface – aka her boyfriend Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich) and his psycho pal Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard) – in the first “Scream,” which also launched “Scream” regulars Dewey Riley (David Arquette) and Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) into the pop-culture pantheon.

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Set 25 years later, the latest “Scream” – and the first not directed by Wes Craven, who died in 2015 – finds another Ghostface on the loose hunting a bunch of high school kids in a story that mines its own mythology in new ways.

“The Woodsboro roots run very deep in this,” says executive producer Chad Villella, part of the Radio Silence filmmaking collective with directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (“Ready or Not”).

“So much of ‘Scream’ is about legacy and generations, the handoff between generations and sins of the past,” Gillett adds. “There was something in that I think made the whole thing just congeal real nicely.”

The cast and the filmmakers break down what’s new in the latest “Scream”:

A fresh-faced ‘Scream’ queen comes home

The franchise’s newest lead character, Sam Carpenter (Melissa Barrera), left Woodsboro years ago but needs to return when her sister Tara (Jenna Ortega) is attacked by Ghostface. “There was too much trauma there, so she had to get out, she had to get away. And with that sacrifice, getting away from the person that she loved the most,” Barrera says of her role. “Coming back all these years later, you see her come face-to-face with her fears and conquer them, which is so characteristic of the franchise. It’s always led by like powerful women who go from victim to warriors and fighters and protectors, and Sam is following in the footsteps of Sidney and Gale.”

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Sidney Prescott is one tough mother

The latest film finds Sidney content as a happy wife and mom, and no longer a reluctant heroine who in the past has hidden away from her past. When she gets the call that old friends need her help, she doesn’t hesitate to jump into action. “The possibility of a threat to your child just takes her strength to another level,” Campbell says. “It’s nice to go in with, oh, well, Sidney would have no doubt whatsoever now. Not that she ever has much doubt, but she needs to take care of this because of the possibility of Ghostface coming for her family.”

Gale Weathers reaches a career highlight

Cox’s ruthless newswoman is a New York City morning show anchor when the film begins. “It’s always been her dream to be known across at least America and that was a big deal for her, to move away and do that,” Cox says. She and Dewey have split up – mirroring Cox and Arquette’s real-life divorce after 2011’s “Scream 4” – but Ghostface’s reappearance gives Gale a chance to mend fences. “There is an evolution of Gale,” Cox says. “I like playing the campy stuff and she still has some quips, but it’s 10 years later and we have all gotten older. And it was nice to play some real emotion in this film.”

Lawman Dewey Riley has seen better days

Unlike Sidney and Gale, the former Woodsboro sheriff has remained in town, although past experiences weigh heavily on him and he constantly feels the pain of previous encounters (including several stab wounds). Dewey gets his cop swagger back investigating the new Ghostface with Sam and her boyfriend Richie (Jack Quaid). “It was interesting that his life hadn’t turned out the way he’d wanted or expected. He found himself in a darker place and these new guys come around and lift him up,” Arquette says. “As you get older, you do get a little road-weary. You understand life a little more.”

New filmmakers bring the gore

“Scream” movies have never been for the faint of heart, but Campbell is quick to point out how the filmmakers went extra hard on the blood spatter, shattered bones and nasty neck wounds. “Wes would just be giggling. He would love it. It seems like they can’t help themselves,” Campbell says. Living up to Craven’s violence in the original “Scream” was important for Gillett: “If we’re doing our jobs right, you should be hoping that we’re getting through it as quickly as possible, which is why we make you sit in it longer.” Adds Bettinelli-Olpin, “The agony of being in that moment with the characters is something we take really seriously.”

That old Ghostface is as freaky as ever

The ghoulish figure continues to be one of the franchise’s most iconic aspects. “There’s something about not knowing who the killer’s going to be each time,” Cox says. “Anybody could be behind that mask.” Getting to share screen time with Ghostface was the first time Barrera felt “genuinely scared” when acting, she says. “There’s something so intimidating about the robe and the mask once it’s on a person. When you see it like hanging on a hanger, the robe is glittery and you’re like, ‘Oh, that seems harmless.’ And then when our stunt people would put it on and grab a knife, it would be terrifying.”

Neve Campbell Chimes In On Fan Theory That ‘Scream’ Killers Billy And Stu Are Gay

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Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott in 2022’s “Scream.” Brownie Harris/Paramount Pictures via Associated Press

With a fifth chapter of “Scream” due in theaters this week, Neve Campbell is taking time to address some fan theories about the iconic horror franchise.

Speaking to Pride Source in a video interview released Monday, the actor touched on the rumor that Billy (played by Skeet Ulrich) and Stu (Matthew Lillard), the killers in the original 1996 movie, were actually a closeted gay couple.

“It’s very much a possibility, and now that Kevin’s out and talking more about that, I would imagine that’s a big part of his thinking,” Campbell said, referring to “Scream” screenwriter Kevin Williamson.

Pressed for clarification, Campbell explained that it was plausible that Billy and Stu were “pretty confused guys” who were driven to commit murder because of self-hatred.

“If I were to theorize, I would say that there was perhaps some confusion with them,” she said, “and that maybe some of their anger comes from not being allowed to be who they want to be, if you wanna go there.”

Watch a clip of Neve Campbell’s Pride Source interview below.

Williamson, who is gay, also lent credence to those theories about Billy and Stu’s relationship in recent interviews.

“It’s very sort of homoerotic, in the sense that there were these two guys that killed this other person just to see if they could get away with it,” Williamson said. “And one of the reasons that one could get the other one is because I think the other one was secretly in love with him, and it was sort of a fascinating case study on double murderers.

“If you Google Leopold and Loeb, you will see,” he continued. “And you’ll read about it and you’ll get, OK, that’s Billy and Stu.”

And in a 2021 interview, Williamson said that “Scream” and its sequels were “coded in gay survival.”

“As a gay kid, I related to the final girl and to her struggle because it’s what one has to do to survive as a young gay kid, too,” he told The Independent. “You’re watching this girl survive the night and survive the trauma she’s enduring.”

Campbell is reprising her role as Sidney Prescott in the new “Scream,” which hits theaters Friday. Original cast members David Arquette and Courteney Cox also star in the film.

Neve Campbell says she was attacked by a bear on set as a teenager

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Neve Campbell says she was attacked by a bear on set as a teenager The ‘Scream’ star opened up about the experience to Kelly Clarkson this week

Hollywood stars have to do all sorts of things on set, and many do their own stunts. Animals being involved isn’t unusual, either. But Neve Campbell shocked Kelly Clarkson this week when she told her about something she said happened to her while filming as a teenager.

The 48-year-old star, best known for her role in the Scream franchise, told the American Idol winner she was attacked on set by a bear when she was just 17 years old.

And yes, if you’re wondering, it happened in Canada. (Unsurprisingly, Kelly immediately asked that.)

“It’s not like when we were camping or anything,” Neve said Kelly’s talk show on Jan. 13.

The mom of two said the crew told her to give the bear a pop, put her hand in some honey and run away, then turn around, stick out her hand, and feed the bear when she was behind a nearby tree. The goal, Neve explained, was for her to be “one with the animals” in the role.

“I was like, ‘OK,’” she said, adding she wanted to “please everyone” at the time. “And I dip my hand in one and run to this rock. I turn around and put my hand out and the bear is not slowing down, and he grabs me by the leg and pulls me through the forest.

Neve with Courteney Cox and David Arquette at the premiere of Scream 4 in 2011. They’re reprising their roles in the new Scream film that’s out Jan. 14. Photo: © John Shearer/WireImage

“My mother happens to be visiting set and so she’s screaming, and everyone on set froze, because no one knows what’s happening. All I can think to say is, ‘He’s biting me,’ like it wasn’t obvious.”

Luckily, she said one of the animal wranglers began throwing rocks at the bear, which then became angry and left Neve alone.

If you were thinking there was no way on Earth Neve would want to do that again, she responded by saying, “No! That was rehearsal! We didn’t get it on camera! Let’s do it [again]!” when she was told they were scrapping that entirely from the film.

“Actors are so different from musicians!” Kelly hilariously quipped in response. “I can’t express this enough. Like, literally, if I was in a music video and that went down, I would be like, ‘Bye!’”

“So would I, now!” Neve responded, saying now that she’s “old” there’s no way she would have agreed.

Neve is set to star in another instalment of the Scream franchise. It’s a sequel to Scream 4, and also features the returns of Courteney Cox, David Arquette and Skeet Ulrich, known for their roles in some of the previous films. It’s out Jan. 14!

Courteney Cox Gave Heart to the Heartless in ‘Scream’

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Cox smartly resisted making her character, Gale Weathers, a stereotype of tabloid journalism by playing her with compassion in Wes Craven’s meta-horror classic.

Dimension Films

By Jacob Trussell · Published on January 11th, 2022

Acting is an art form, and behind every iconic character is an artist expressing themselves. Welcome to The Great Performances, a bi-weekly column exploring the art behind some of cinema’s best roles. In this entry, we examine Courteney Cox’s performance in Scream.

In Scream (1996), cinephile Randy (Jamie Kennedy) lays out the rules for surviving a horror movie. You can’t drink or do drugs. And never under any circumstances, should you say “I’ll be right back.” But the number one most important rule? Never have sex. These rules are integral to one of the most well-known tropes in the horror genre, the Final Girl, a phrase first coined by Carol J. Clover for her book Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film.

Throughout the Scream franchise, the Final Girl is Sidney Prescott, portrayed by Neve Campbell. The quiet resilience Campbell gave Sidney has made her one of the most beloved heroines of horror cinema. She kicks ass and takes names as she fights back against the myriad of murderers that don the Ghostface mask. Whether she’s armed with a handgun or a TV set, we love watching Sidney take matters into her own hands to stop the nightmares that plague her life.

Here’s the intriguing thing about Sidney, though, that sets her apart from other famous Final Girls: in the original Scream, she breaks Randy’s rules by having sex with her boyfriend, Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich). This allows Sidney to subvert the trope, untethering the strength of her character from the idea that Final Girls must be virginal to survive. This choice by writer Kevin Williamson gave agency back to Sidney, and we see that tenacity in each subsequent sequel.

The Other Final Girl of Scream: Gale Weathers

But there’s one female character in Scream just as strong as Sidney who doesn’t break Randy’s rules: Courteney Cox’s Gale Weathers. On-screen, we never see Gale drink, do drugs, have sex, or say “I’ll be right back.” Sure, we can surmise that Gale isn’t a virgin — after all, she is a decade older than the film’s cast of high school characters. Still, we never see her do any of these things in the actual film. If we’re following Randy’s rules to a T, that’s all that matters, right?

However, Gale isn’t initially positioned as the hero of the franchise, which makes it difficult to immediately view her as a Final Girl. The descriptor that is frequently used to describe Gale by the other characters, the creative team, and even Cox herself, is “bitchy.” Director Wes Craven originally described the character to Cox as a “bitch on wheels.” In the film, Gale’s cameraman Kenny (W. Earl Brown) describes her as a “bitch goddess.” In interviews during the press tour for the original film, Cox discussed how excited she was to finally play a “bitchy” character. But when I look at Gale Weathers, I don’t see a character that is “bitchy.” I see a determined, career-oriented person who will do whatever it takes to emerge on top of an industry, and a world, stacked against empowered women.

Gale Weathers is a tabloid journalist fashioned after the personalities that emerged from lowbrow television news programs of the mid-’90s like Hard Copy and Inside Edition. This was an era when the line between news and entertainment had begun to blur, so it’s no wonder that a reporter is positioned as a foil to the main protagonists in Scream as a media circus erupts in the town of Woodsboro. Gale is meant to embody everything wrong with modern media: brazenly opportunistic reporters who are more concerned with raising their own status and making loads of money through shock value than an altruistic pursuit of the truth. However, this is a one-dimensional read on Gale, and at odds with the way Cox portrays her.

Courteney Cox Brings Empathy to a Scream Antagonist

In the first movie, Gale believes that Cotton Weary (Liev Schreiber) had been falsely accused by Sidney of the murder of her mother, Maureen, a year earlier. Sidney, however, believes that Gale trumped up false truths about her life simply to sell more copies of her upcoming book. And as Sidney is the audience surrogate, this is how we’re supposed to view Gale as well, regardless of the fact that all of Gale’s actions, from her reporting to her book, have been in pursuit of clearing an innocent man’s name.

Because Gale is initially presented as a quasi-antagonist, in the hands of another actor she could have easily become a cardboard cut-out of compassionless journalism. Throughout the first movie, we watch Gale get excited as the juicy story of the Woodsboro Murders begins to emerge. Looking into her eyes, you expect to see cartoon money signs flashing as the body count rises, but Cox never lets Gale relish in the misery of what she’s reporting. By resisting playing Gale as shamelessly unremorseful, Cox was able to find the heart in her heartless character.

We see this empathy in Cox’s Gale after she watches Sidney sneak out of the Woodsboro Police Department following her first brush with Ghostface. Rather than jumping into a line of antagonistic questions, Cox’s Gale shows genuine concern for Sidney, immediately asking her, “Are you alright?” Of course, Gale wants to get the hot scoop, but this moment speaks to the underlying empathy that Cox threads into her character. Just because she wants to write a story about Sidney does not mean Gale isn’t sympathetic for what she just lived through.

More Than a Thinly Written Tabloid Journalist

Even after Sidney snidely asks how Gale’s book is progressing, Cox doesn’t match her combativeness. Gale’s line “I’ll send you a copy!” causes Sidney to punch her in the face, but Cox doesn’t deliver it with the snark you’d expect from an unscrupulous character. She retains an open earnestness in her expressions that makes the audience question if Gale is as cold as she’s made out to be. Cox plays Gale in such a way that while she may see an opportunity to tell a hell of a good story, it’s clear she’s in it for more than just the fame and glory.

That being said, Cox’s Gale has to fight to get this point across to the other characters in the series. “Is this just another brilliant Gale Weathers performance?” Dewey (David Arquette) quips at her after the murders begin in Scream 2. With exasperation she screams at him, “There’s no cameras here! I just want to find this fucker!” She catches her breath and hesitates, almost like she’s silently considering whether anyone will ever believe this to be true of her. She then quietly pleads with Dewey that this is who she really is.

In Cox’s earnest declaration, it cements in the audience that Gale isn’t a composite of the crass tabloid journalists from the ’90s. Cox’s Gale is a multidimensional character that can’t be neatly defined by the preconceptions that both the audience and the characters have projected onto her. Gale may be presented as a “bitch,” but through Cox’s performance, she distances herself from that misogynistic stereotype.

How Courteney Cox Got the Role of Gale Weathers

Surprisingly, though, Cox almost wasn’t Gale Weathers. The production knew they wanted to have a recognizable face in the role, so they originally offered the part to comedian Janeane Garofalo before considering actress and model Brooke Shields. Cox lobbied hard for the role because she wanted to break out of the mold Hollywood had made of her after her work on Family Ties and Friends. As Cox told The Hollywood Reporter, “[Scream’s producer] Cary Woods was in my manager’s office and she pitched me for the part of Gale. Cary thought it would be a nice surprise to have me play such a calculated character…but I had to convince Wes. So, I wrote him a letter and assured him that being ‘a bitch’ wouldn’t be a stretch at all.”

Courteney Cox was perfectly attuned to the “bitchy” confidence Gale Weathers required, though it’s the heart she gave her character that has made Gale a fan favorite throughout the Scream franchise. Does she want to sell more books? Sure, what journalist — tabloid or otherwise — doesn’t want their work to be seen and heard? But Cox doesn’t play that as Gale’s overarching motivation. If she had merely played Gale as cruel and cold, it’d have been difficult for us to come to love the character as she evolved into one of the series’ central heroes.

Through the compassion she baked into her performance, Cox was able to show audiences that Gale was driven by something more than her bottom line. She earnestly wants to uncover the underlying truths that she ardently believes in so she can help put the real killers in the world behind bars. And if she makes a couple of bucks off of it in the process. Frankly, more power to her.