Do you like scary movies? If you do, you're in for a treat, because one of the horror genre's most widely worshipped filmmakers will be joining us right here on MTV Movies Blog all week long.
"Scream 4" director Wes Craven is serving as the guest editor of Movies Blog throughout the week, bringing you the ins and outs of what went into making the fourth entry in his blood-soaked slasher franchise, commentary on the progression of the horror genre in recent years and much, much more.
Today, we're talking about the origins of "Scream 4." In a day and age where sequels, reboots and overhauls are par for the course, it's not necessarily surprising to see that "Scream" is back for more — after all, the killer always comes back from the dead for one last scare, doesn't he? — but the combined forces of Craven, original "Scream" writer Kevin Williamson and stars Neve Campbell, David Arquette and Coutrney Cox make this continuation a force to be reckoned with.
"Principally, it was the elements," Craven told MTV News of what attracted him to the "Scream" revival. "The script by Kevin, knowing where it was going to go, that was very exciting. And the fact that Courtney, David and Neve were going to be a part of it, I think we all have a comfort level together. It was important to all of us to know that the others would be there."
But that wasn't the only reason that Craven decided to return for "Scream 4," explaining: "It wasn't like we were wracking our brains for ten years and couldn't come up with anything. It was very much that Bob Weinstein said shortly after ['Scream 3'] that there wasn't going to be a fourth, for many, many years. That was to honor the integrity of the trilogy, the first three. We didn't want to knock off bogus sequels a year and a half afterwards. So we waited, and it afforded us the chance to look back on a whole decade of new material to analyze and talk about."
In a way, then, "Scream" almost needed to rest on the shelf before it could successfully reflect the way that horror has changed in the decade since "Scream 3."
"I think it was [necessary], for it to be fresh and for there to be not a feeling that we were doing it because we could and we just wanted to make some money or something like that," he said. "We had all comfortably moved on to other things, but in the backs of our minds, I think we all thought, 'Well, if we live that long, if the country doesn't collapse into total financial ruin, it would be interesting to do a new trilogy.'"
A new trilogy, you ask? That's right — Wes and his colleagues have already considered ways to continue the "Scream" series past the upcoming fourth film. But the specific how's and why's, well, those are questions for later in the week. This wouldn't be a series of "Scream" blogs without some suspense, after all!
Are you glad that Wes decided to return to the "Scream" franchise for one more scare? Tell us what you think in the comments section and on Twitter, and stay with us all week for more Wes Craven!
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