Scream 6 will officially be slashing its way through theaters next year

Paramount has announced that the sixth film in the Scream franchise will be making its way to theaters sooner than you might’ve expected: March 31, 2023.

Twenty-six years after Wes Craven revitalized the slasher sub-genre for the ‘90s with Scream, Scream (not that Scream, but a fifth Scream) scared up big money in theaters, surpassing expectations for the legacy sequel released during the doldrums of January and in the midst of COVID-19. A sequel was green-lit the weekend of the film’s release.

Earlier this week, series star Courtney Cox told the Variety podcast that she will return as reporter Gale Weathers for the sixth film in the series, and that production is slated to begin this June. Also returning are directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillet as well as writers James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick. Series creator Kevin Williamson executive produces.

Slasher films were was always known—for better at worse—for being cranked out at an impressive clip. Paramount was releasing a Friday The 13th film a year for a spell in the ‘80s and Scream 2 was released almost one year to the date of the original.

With a release date now locked in, one question remains: what will they title it?

Obviously, Scream 2 isn’t off-limits as the “requel”—the fourth sequel in the franchise—simply copped the name of the 1996 original. Back in 1997, the original script for the sequel was titled Scream Again before being changed to Scream: The Sequel and was finally locked in with Scream 2.

Maybe it’s finally time for the filmmakers to deliver an honest to god Stab picture, the in-universe film adaptations of events of the Scream series. The latest film was a pleasant surprise for most fans of the decades-old franchise; it paid tribute to the past, offered up that sly meta-commentary that’s been a hallmark of the series, and introduced a new cast of teenagers that audiences can’t wait to see offed in a multitude of hyper-violent ways.

[Via Deadline]