The never ending franchise is a staple of horror. Nearly any profitable series is reiterated ad nauseam until even the hardcore fans refuse to shell out the cash for direct-to-video dime store sequels. There are seven Saw films and that series only began 8 years ago! Meanwhile the acclaimed and profitable Scream series, which is twice as old as Saw, has racked up a mere four installments. Perhaps this is for the best, considering quality control issues. For example, legendary director Wes Craven was able to direct all four Scream films, meanwhile he wrote and/or directed a mere two films out of the nine Nightmare on Elm Street installments, a series which he himself invented.
With the release of Scream 4, it momentarily seemed Scream was finally poised to repeat ad infinitum like franchises oft do, with a fifth and sixth film in the works. I would have been delighted to see this come to pass, but unfortunately Scream 4 performed below financial expectations. So while the idea of more Scream sequels
is not completely off the table yet, it seems unlikely, and
there has been no movement towards that goal thus far.
The latest news on new Scream content (albeit 4 months old), is that MTV is developing a TV series based on Scream.
For many people this may seem a strange fit. But as an obsessive TV nerd with a finger on the pulse of the times, I'd say a Scream series makes a goddamn lot of good sense right about now. Scream is three things: horror, mystery, and snarky satire.
- Horror television serials (i.e. not anthologies) are in the midst of their most powerful boom of all-time, with the resounding success of The Walking Dead, Dexter, True Blood, American Horror Story, and The Vampire Diaries.
- Likewise, darkly cool teen mysteries have recently become a big hit, in the form of ABC Family's Pretty Little Liars and Nickelodeon's House of Anubis.
- Meanwhile, snarky satire has remained one of the driving forces in television since the dawn of the 90s, look no further than Archer, Family Guy, The Office, and 30 Rock to witness its enduring popularity. Mind you, those shows have very little in common with Scream per se', but the recent smash hit The Cabin In The Woods has quite a bit in common with Scream, thus proving that a new horror satire would be very timely and potentially lucrative.
- Scream is also a series, at its heart, about serial killers, and with the success of Dexter many new serial killer TV shows are in the works, including an NBC show based on Hannibal Lecter, and FOX's The Following (more on that in a minute).
So clearly this is a pretty great idea they have, to make a Scream TV series. Now all that remains is
how they're going to put it together, and whether they'll do it well. I imagine something along the lines of each season having a different static collection of Ghostfaces; probably just two like the films, but maybe three or four since there's more space to work with, certainly no more than that. Having a new killer every episode or every few episodes would be overkill in more ways than one (pun intended). I imagine the mystery unfolded maybe over the length of each season, and then starting relatively fresh next season.
I don't think the original cast should be brought into the series, not that they're likely to sign on anyway. Ghostface is an icon that anyone, anywhere can utilize, that's part of the point. There's no reason every deranged horror-watching revenge-seeker should seek out Sidney Prescott, that was more of a plot device to carry the plot across the film series. It's every bit as plausible for the TV series to feature brand new characters. After all, everyone knows Ghostface from the "Stab" franchise.
The most important thing they absolutely
should retain from the original series, is writer/creator Kevin Williamson. The man is every bit as much a TV auteur as he is one of film, with his shows Dawson's Creek and The Vampire Diaries being just as important as his Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer films. So a Scream TV series without Kevin Williamson? That just plain doesn't make logical sense. Another writer might be able to handle the series if we're very lucky, but nothing could insure both the show's genuine legitimacy, and its dependable brilliance, like bringing in Kevin Williamson.
Tragically, Kevin Williamson is more than likely deposed at the moment. In addition to his work on the continuingly-successful Vampire Diaries, he also has created a brand new show on FOX called The Following. Wouldn't you know it, it's a show about a serial killer. Why didn't FOX commission a Scream series instead? We can only wonder, especially considering The Following sounds like an awful police procedural that is doomed to fail almost immediately. The premise for The Following sounds kind of fucking stupid (sorry Kevin W., you know I worship the ground you walk on and consider you one of media's all-time geniuses, but this show just isn't going to work.) It's about serial killers cooperating together under the influence of one mastermind killer, and the cliche' group of FBI agents who are trying to track him down.
Depressingly, FOX has deeper pockets than MTV. So a battle between The Following and a hypothetical "MTV's Scream" would almost certainly end in FOX's favor, regarding Kevin's allegiances.
But, if it's all we can get, I'm perfectly happy with accepting a Scream series under a different author. There's always the possibility Kevin could come aboard later in the series' run, if it gets that far.
So, the only link in this puzzle that worries me now is MTV.
There are literally a dozen stations I would feel much more comfortable with in creating a Scream TV series.
The CW's proven they can handle horror with the gorgeously gothic and genuinely violent Vampire Diaries, a Kevin Williamson show no less! SyFy Channel may be bad at most things, but their brooding adaption of Being Human at least shows they could make a Scream series that is properly serious. FX seems like the ideal station to air a Scream series by virtue of their penchant for stylish and gorey drama, most notably the brilliant American Horror Story. I drool to imagine the joys that could come from AMC spearheading the series and giving us a Walking Dead-calibur A++ horror masterpiece. And in the era of Dexter, I'm surprised HBO or Showtime wouldn't want to pick up on Scream's venerable legacy and put together an artisan show without having to give up one ounce of the original films' blood or nudity. Even ABC Family has proven they can create a dark, mysterious flavor through the ocassional grim flourish in The Secret Circle and Pretty Little Liars.
But, MTV? Admittedly I've only watched a few episodes of Teen Wolf, but it didn't strike me as capturing the darkness necessary for Scream. It's not a horror show, it's just supernatural, like Charmed or Buffy. I don't have anything remotely against MTV, Awkward is one of the best shows on television. There's no question that MTV can match the hip sarcasm and referential humor which is part and parcel of Scream, but I remain unconvinced that they can create a decent horror series. They're just too glib of a station. And do you know what you get when you subtract the horror from Scream? You get Scream 3, resoundingly the worst of the series. And if it should come to pass that Kevin Williamson isn't in the writer's seat (which is quite likely), add that to MTV's hypothetical inability to create a horrific atmosphere and worse than Scream 3, you're going to be verging on
Scary Movie territory. I shudder to imagine.
But there's always the chance that they can impress me and put together something as sadistic and brutal as the original Scream. Who knows, maybe Wes Craven could even be convinced to direct (not likely). I'll remain enthusiastic and hopeful indefinitely
Honestly, I doubt this series will ever reach fruition. But if it does you can damn well bet I will be the figurative 'first in line' to watch it. Even if it does suck, I'd love to see it happen just to see how it pans out and how they try to put it together. It'd be very interesting if nothing else.
