Ghostface OG Star Matthew Lillard Is Anxious He Could Ruin the Franchise with the Seventh Installment.

The highly anticipated horror film Scream 7 is set to arrive in theaters in the coming year, and it is preparing for a major family reunion. This new chapter marks the legendary comeback of Neve Campbell as final girl Sidney Prescott, after sitting out the previous film. She will, as usual, be alongside Courtney Cox as journalist Gail Weathers, but they won't be the only beloved characters returning to the fray.

"Coming back to a role you portrayed in your twenties when you're 55 was a daunting task that kept me up at night," the actor reveals.

An Unexpected Return for Fallon Characters

Reports have confirmed that a trio of distinct characters from earlier films are set to return in this new outing, even though dying in prior movies. The exact mechanism of their resurrection remains a mystery. Audiences should get ready for the reappearance of the beloved and nearly unkillable officer Dewey Riley, the filmmaker and Scream 3 antagonist Roman Bridger, and a member of the first film's killer pair, Stu Macher.

The Weight of Iconic Legacy

For Matthew Lillard, reprising his role in the franchise for the first time since a brief cameo is a long-held wish, even if he is apprehensive about the audience response. The actor vividly recalls the exact moment he got the news from the original writer.

"I recall the conversation. I remember the pleasantries. I remember him asking. That moment is permanently etched on my mind," he states. "Therefore I'm really proud to be back. I'm really excited to be back."

Stu Macher has attained cult status in the decades since the original film was released, which made Lillard feeling quite nervous.

"Truthfully, that's a role that is infamous, for better or worse," he notes. "A part that is now represented in every single Scream mask that appears every Halloween."

The Anxiety of Disappointing the Fandom

Now that production has concluded, Lillard is waiting like the rest of us to see the final product. He confesses to feeling immense anxiety about hoping not to be the one who ruins the popular franchise.

"It's either a hit and people are thrilled to have you, or it's a miss," Lillard observes. "At the start, I don't know if the film will gonna work. I don't know if people want to see me. I've definitely seen enough people state and say, 'Stu is dead. Why are they returning to this trope?' So the truth is that I feel a lot of pressure to not mess up the series. I hope people leaving Scream 7 and saying, 'Well, that sucked, and Matthew Lillard was the cause.'"

Speculation and Anticipation Run High

While many dedicated fans are excited for Stu's return, the big question of how he and the others come back remains. Perhaps they live as manifestations in Sidney's mind, similar to a previous plot device. Or, maybe they are somehow all alive in a bizarre communal situation. The chance of a self-referential narrative, reminiscent of classic horror movies, also is on the table.

Audiences will find out the answer when Scream 7 arrives in theaters.