For example, when Dewey proposed to Gale at the end, it was a sweet moment that mirrored the stars' then-real life marriage - but it wasn't really earned in the film itself. Losing some of this material, the story seemed more slipshod than it already was. This even results in the curious fact that Roman unmasking himself is also the first time Sid has ever actually met him, which doesn't exactly make for as strong a reveal as "her boyfriend" or even "her new buddy from college." To make up for this, earlier versions of the film gave Cox and Arquette more to do (Gale is even re-introduced before Sidney, which in my opinion plays stronger), only to whittle down these moments for the final version as if to try to hide the fact that the series' main star was largely peripheral to this one's story.
#Left on the cutting room floor movie#
As any astute fan knows, Neve Campbell's availability was stretched thin for this entry, as she was working on another movie ( Drowning Mona, which is great! Seek it out!) and the final season of her show at the same time, which is why Sidney barely interacts with the other characters even after she returns from isolation. The biggest reveal in these older cuts is that the creative team was out to give Dewey and Gale their time to shine.
Or, at the very least, Parker Posey wouldn't usually be the only thing its defenders have to point to as a reason to justify its existence.
But having gotten to see some earlier cuts of the film, it's clear that there was more robust character material that ended up being excised, and I believe that, had some of it been included, the film as a whole would have fared better. No, I don't think there was ever a way to completely salvage it from some misguided ideas (the dream sequence, oof), an abundance of characters who never seem like reasonable suspects, and the decision to have a solo killer that rendered the mystery falling flat. Instead, I'm here to tell you that once upon a time, the film was better than it ended up being. Luckily, I'm not here to trash the film I've done that enough over the years. In short, it wasn't as much of a horror film with humor anymore - it was a comedy with a few scares tossed into the mix. Again, it has its defenders, as all films do, but general consensus is that Scream 3 lacked the same wit as the previous two, with Ehren Kruger's script (stepping in for Kevin Williamson, who was too busy at the time to commit in full) seeming to favor Jay and Silent Bob cameos and showbiz in-jokes over the first two films' clever homages to slasher films of yore. While it performed well enough at the box office, critics weren't as enamored as they were with the first two, and word of mouth didn't help it the way it did the original (which was a sleeper hit, for those too young to remember or watch it unfold for themselves). And so, with respect to those who say otherwise, 2000's Scream 3 will continue to generally be considered the low point among the five films. This weekend, and time itself, will tell if it was worth the effort, but with word of mouth being strong, it seems unlikely that Scream (2022) will end up at the bottom of many fans' rankings (having seen it, I assure you that it certainly isn't at the bottom of mine). That renewed interest has kept the franchise afloat, enough for Paramount to snap up the rights and - thankfully, instead of a remake - press forward with a fifth entry, which reteams the core cast of Neve Campbell, David Arquette, and Courteney Cox (and yes, of course, Roger Jackson as the voice of Ghostface) for yet another adventure in Woodsboro. Who would dare make a new film without him, especially since ticket sales seemed to prove fans had moved on? But despite its box office misfortunes, Scream 4's popularity has grown over the years, with some (not me) claiming it's actually the best sequel. Later this week, millions of Scream fans will finally be able to add a new entry to their obligatory rankings, something that once seemed unlikely due to both the underwhelming box office of 2011's Scream 4 and the 2015 death of Wes Craven, who had helmed all entries.