Scream 6 is picking up speed as several stars from this year’s franchise return are set to reprise their roles for the sequel. In addition to the likes of Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, Mason Gooding and Jasmine Savoy Brown, Scream 4 survivor Kirby Reed, played by Heroes star Hayden Panettiere, will be coming back to the franchise after missing the latest installment. With Scream being a success in January, pulling in just under $140 million, it was inevitable that another movie would not be long in coming. After being announced just weeks after the fifth film’s debut, Scream 6 is now set for release in March 2023.

Hayden Panettiere became part of the Scream franchise in 2011 when she joined returning cast members like Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox and David Arquette, as well as newcomers including Emma Roberts, Anthony Anderson and Rory Culkin, among others in Scream 4. While there are usually very few characters who come up against Ghostface live to fight again, Kirby managed to survive being attacked by one of the movie’s killers and was fully expected to make a return to the franchise in 2022’s revival reboot. However, when she did not appear, it was believed that her character would simply not feature again in the series.

However, following a wave of casting announcements, it was confirmed by Paramount and Spyglass that the actress has signed on to the new sequel to reprise her role. It is currently not known exactly how Panettiere’s character will meet up with the survivors of the new Woodsboro murders, who will be the focus of the latest story in the Scream saga.

Related: Courteney Cox Confirms Scream 6 Return: ‘I Got the Script’

Scream 6 Turns The Focus on the New Stars of the Franchise

While Scream was all about the return of franchise favorites Courteney Cox, David Arquette and Neve Campbell, the next chapter shifts the focus to the new characters set up in that movie as they leave Woodsboro behind to start a new life away from the horrors of the town. However, Courteney Cox has been confirmed as returning to the role of Gale Weathers, but whether she will survive another round is something that many fans have been debating.

Scream proved that no one is safe from a gory death, and after killing off David Arquette’s Dewey, many believe that the new trilogy will continue to pick off its old cast members one at a time, although it is not known yet if Neve Campbell will be back this time. Of course, the Scream franchise has always attempted to do what audiences least expect, which goes back to Drew Barrymore’s opening scene death in the original Wes Craven classic. Co-director of Scream 6 Tyler Gillett recently told Empire that the new movie will once again try to take fans by surprise. He said:

“This movie has to be willing to risk it all in order to subvert all of those expectations. And we’re so far down the rabbit hole of Scream movies, that it’s all up for grabs at this point.”

Scream (2022) can be seen now on Paramount+, while Scream 6 hits cinemas in March 2023.

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