While Matthew Lillard's 2026’s Scream 7 has already been legendarily messy, and there is still over a year before the sequel arrives in theaters. First, Scream 2022 and Scream VI stars Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega left the sequel in November 2023, only for original director Christopher Landon to exit shortly after.
Then, series star Neve Campbell was confirmed to return in Scream 7, with original Scream screenwriter Kevin Williamson directing. However, Patrick Dempsey’s Scream 3 love interest Mark Kincaid was replaced by Joel McHale, and Scream 7 cast Sidney’s daughter with Yellowstone star Isabel May. The question of how Sidney had a secret daughter in her 20s aside, the return of Campbell’s original co-star Courtney Cox was soon announced and the cast was rounded out by newcomers Celeste O'Connor, McKenna Grace, and Asa Germann, as well as returning ing stars Mason Gooding and Jasmin Savoy Brown.
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Although this cast includes some major star power, there were some tricky questions for Scream 7’s story to answer even before the most recent cast addition was revealed. The fact that Sidney never mentioned her adult daughter’s existence before Scream 7 is bizarre since May’s character would have been around 10 during Scream 4 and around 20 during Scream 2022’s story. Furthermore, it is hard to see how Gooding’s Chad and Brown’s Mindy can return without viewers wondering what happened to Barrera’s Sam and Ortega’s Tara.
Scream 4’s Kirby came back in Scream VI, proving it isn't impossible for the franchise to retcon apparent off-screen deaths.
All of these problems were heightened when original Scream star Matthew Lillard confirmed that he would return as Stu Macher in Scream 7 via Instagram. A few short years ago, this announcement might have been met with delight. There were persistent fan theories about Stu surviving Scream’s ending, with Scream VI even alluding to these claims. Scream 4’s Kirby came back in Scream VI, proving it isn't impossible for the franchise to retcon apparent off-screen deaths. Finally, Skeet Ulrich reprising his role as Billy proved the franchise could bring back characters as ghosts even if they were definitively dead.
Then Five Nights At Freddy’s happened. 2023’s long-awaited video game adaptation may not have been well-liked by critics, but it was one of the biggest horror movies in years. As such, Lillard playing Scream 7’s villain now wouldn’t be much of a novelty since the actor already appeared as the villain of one of the most successful horror movies of the last decade. Scream 7’s story may have another plan for Lillard’s Stu, but most of the character’s other return options are equally unviable for various reasons.
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Since Stu playing Scream 7’s villain would inevitably be an unsurprising disappointment after Five Nights At Freddy’s already used this twist, the Scream franchise could bring back Lillard’s Stu as a ghost instead. However, this would also be a terrible idea since it would remind viewers of Billy's role in Scream 2022 and Scream VI. Billy appeared as a ghost to Sam in both movies, so using Stu in the same fashion would remind viewers that the Scream series left Sam and Tara’s story unfinished.
Already, the presence of Chad and Mindy will make Sam and Tara’s absence obvious and tough to justify. Bringing Stu back as a ghost will only exacerbate this, reminding viewers of Sam’s hauntings and making the story of Scream 2022 and Scream VI feel even more obviously unfinished. Scream 7 needs a clean break, and that will be impossible when the sequel has promised to bring back the sidekick of a character who was central to Scream 2022 and Scream VI’s backstory.
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Since it is clear that Scream 7 can’t bring back Stu as a ghost or have him play the sequel’s killer villain, another option would be to simply reveal that he has been alive all along. The unlikely Scream survivor Stu Macher could be a red herring, and the revelation that he is alive could distract Sidney and her family from the real culprit for a while. However, ’s ending already ruined this possibility, too.
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Near the end of Scream VI, Kirby itted to Mindy that there were conspiracy theories about Stu surviving the massacre at Scream’s ending. If ever there was a time to bring back Stu, that was it. The ensuing finale featured two young characters who could have been Stu’s children unmasking themselves and saying that they did all of this to avenge their family, only for the third killer to turn out to be Dermot Mulroney’s Detective Bailey and the family connection to instead be with Scream 2022’s killer, Richie.
Now, it will no longer be surprising if Stu is alive in Scream 7. In-universe, this possibility was already teased in Scream VI. In reality, Lillard announcing his role in the sequel means it is expected. Furthermore, Scream 7 revealing that Stu somehow survived the events of Scream and then successfully hid his identity in the decades that followed is already faintly ridiculous.
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Finally, Scream 7 could just kill off Matthew Lillard’s Stu to shock viewers. This would definitely be the most controversial approach for the slasher franchise to take since viewers have waited since 1996 to see the character return. However, it would hard for this twist not to feel like a waste of time, meaning Stu can’t return after decades just to be killed off.
Even revealing that Stu is alive isn’t as surprising as it once would have been, meaning there is no good way for Scream 7 to utilize his return.
Stu can’t be the villain, as outlined above, and he can’t be a ghost since this would just remind viewers of Billy’s unfinished business with Sam and Tara. Even revealing that Stu is alive isn’t as surprising as it once would have been, meaning there is no good way for Scream 7 to utilize his return. If Scream 2022 featured Stu, the character’s comeback might have worked. As is, the Scream villain’s return in Scream 7 feels like another desperate ploy to keep an ailing franchise alive for another sequel.
Source: Instagram
