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Guy Busick and James Vanderbilt reveal why their original idea evolved, and how they embraced a Scream 2 parallel they hadn’t planned.
Patrick Gomez
Warning: Major Scream VI spoilers ahead.
The final cut sees the father and siblings of 2022 Scream killer Richie Kirsch (Jack Quaid) putting on the Ghostface mask, but “that actually wasn’t part of the initial pitch,” Busick tells EW.
“We just knew it was going to be a family, a secret family, and they had a slightly different motive for coming after Sam,” continues Busick, who also wrote the 2022 Scream with Vanderbilt. “The motive of the killers in the last film is very intellectual — it’s more about an idea about toxic fans feeling that their franchise has fallen on hard times and ‘we have to get it back on track,’ and they’re taking it so far. But it’s very intellectual, it’s very esoteric, and we wanted something really primal. It had to be more personal. That’s when we found the Richie piece and we were like, ‘Oh, that’ll be fun, because it ties all the way back into our first movie together and it tells one big story.'”
Scream VI
Ghostface in ‘Scream VI.’
| Credit: Philippe Bossé/Paramount Pictures
With the killers’ Richie connection and motivation set, the team set out determining the perfect location for the final Ghostface showdown. And while Scream VI is chock full of Scream 2 Easter eggs, ending the film in a theater was not originally intended to be one of them.
“Originally, it was actually just going to be in a warehouse,” says Vanderbilt, “but it just felt like more of a museum. We were having trouble finding a location that really worked. Then our brilliant location scout and location manager found this place. They were like, ‘We have an location, but don’t freak out. It’s a theater.'”
“We were uneasy because we didn’t want people to think we were just copying and pasting from Scream 2,” adds Busick. “But when we saw the space in person, we knew that it would have a completely different look and feel, especially due to the shrine/museum element. And it gave us an opportunity to include the late Richie Kirsch’s ‘fan films,’ which included footage provided by Jack Quaid himself from his younger days.”
‘Scream VI’ sets the stage
‘Scream VI’ sets the stage
| Credit: COURTESY OF PARAMOUNT PICTURES AND SPYGLASS MEDIA GROUP
While the writers acknowledge the Scream VI’s final speeches echo that of Laurie Metcalf’s Debbie Salt (a.k.a. Billy Loomis’ mom) from Scream 2, those particular parallels were actually a selling point not a concern, says Vanderbilt.
“The idea was that almost every Scream goes back,” he explains. “Scream 1 is Skeet [Ulrich’s Billy Loomis] doing it because of what happened to his mother, so he’s doing revenge for family. Laurie Metcalf[‘s Debbie Salt] in 2 is doing revenge for family. Scream 3, [Scott Foley’s] Roman Bridger is part of Sid’s family and doing his revenge for family. Scream 4 is Jill Roberts, who’s also part of Sid’s family. is doing it. So, it felt very much in line with definitely Laurie Metcalf, but very much in line with the whole franchise, in this interesting way. So, we were thrilled to be able to do that and getting watch all three of them work as a family. It was super fun.”
Or, you might say, a blood good time?
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