Matthew Lillard "Embarrassed" To Return For Scream 7

Published Sep 16, 2026, 4:15 PM EDT Brennan Klein (he/him) is a senior news writer at Screen Rant, host of the Attack of the Queerwolf podcast, and contributor at Alternate Ending and Horror Press. He has been writing and podcasting about pop culture (especially horror movies) for over a decade at platforms including Blumhouse, Fangoria, Dread Central, The Backlot, and Arrow in the Head. Scream 7 star Matthew Lillard has revealed that he is embarrassed to have appeared in the movie. Lillard reprised his role as Stu Macher in the 2026 slasher sequel opposite returning stars Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Mason Gooding, David Arquette, and Scott Foley. The movie, which was directed by original screenwriter Kevin Williamson, was a smash hit, grossing $214 million against its reported $45 million budget. However, Scream 7 has been a lightning rod for controversy due to the firing of Melissa Barrera. The star, who played final girl Sam Carpenter in Scream (2022) and Scream VI, was let go from the project after sharing pro-Palestine posts on social media. The Ultimate · Horror Quote Challenge Name That Horror Movie “They’re coming to get you, Barbara.” ☠1960s 🔪1970s 👻1980s 💀1990s 🎭2000s ENTER IF YOU DARE → 01 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“I am your number one fan.” ASingle White Female (1992) BCape Fear (1991) CMisery (1990) DFatal Attraction (1987) ✓ Correct! Annie Wilkes’s obsessive declaration to author Paul Sheldon in Misery — Kathy Bates won the Oscar for this role. ✗ Not quite — it’s Misery (1990). Kathy Bates as Annie Wilkes delivers this line before things get very, very painful for her favorite author. NEXT → 02 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“We all go a little mad sometimes.” APeeping Tom (1960) BThe Birds (1963) CWhatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) DPsycho (1960) ✓ Correct! Norman Bates’s unsettling confession in Hitchcock’s Psycho — the film that invented the slasher. ✗ Not quite — it’s Psycho (1960). Norman Bates delivers this chilling line to Marion Crane before the shower scene changes cinema forever. NEXT → 03 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“Here’s Johnny!” AThe Amityville Horror (1979) BPoltergeist (1982) CThe Changeling (1980) DThe Shining (1980) ✓ Correct! Jack Nicholson’s terrifying ad-lib as he axes through the bathroom door in The Shining. ✗ Not quite — it’s The Shining (1980). Nicholson improvised this line while hacking through the door — Kubrick kept the cameras rolling. NEXT → 04 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“They’re all gonna laugh at you!” ACarrie (1976) BThe Exorcist (1973) CThe Omen (1976) DSuspiria (1977) ✓ Correct! Margaret White’s cruel warning to her daughter before prom night turns deadly in Carrie. ✗ Not quite — it’s Carrie (1976). 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NEXT → 07 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“It was the boogeyman.” ABlack Christmas (1974) BThe Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) CHalloween (1978) DWhen a Stranger Calls (1979) ✓ Correct! Laurie Strode’s terrified whisper to Dr. Loomis after surviving Michael Myers in Halloween. ✗ Not quite — it’s Halloween (1978). Laurie Strode whispers this to Dr. Loomis, who replies: “As a matter of fact, it was.” NEXT → 08 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“It rubs the lotion on its skin or else it gets the hose again.” ASe7en (1995) BAmerican Psycho (2000) CRed Dragon (2002) DThe Silence of the Lambs (1991) ✓ Correct! Buffalo Bill’s skin-crawling command to his captive in The Silence of the Lambs. ✗ Not quite — it’s The Silence of the Lambs (1991). Buffalo Bill delivers this disturbing line from his basement. All five films feature serial killers, but only one has this scene. REVEAL MY SCORE → The Body Count Your Survival Score 💀 / 8 Did you survive the horror quiz? ↻ SURVIVE AGAIN Per Entertainment Weekly, Matthew Lillard has now spoken out about his involvement in the movie during a 30th anniversary screening of the original 1996 Scream in Austin, Texas on Tuesday. During a Q&A session, a fan asked about how difficult it was to speak out about political topics as a celebrity. Lillard responded by talking about how he works to stand up for his beliefs, but acknowledged that he is "embarrassed" by his decision to return in Scream 7. He reflected that "the whole world should have popped up and said 'she's right,'" and said that the way her comments were handled was "brutal." He reflected on being "called out" for returning to the Scream franchise and said he feels "ashamed" about his decision, offering the explanation that he was "so excited to go back [that] I didn't really think about Melissa and that journey," concluding that "I still like being in the movie [but] it may not have been the best idea." Read his full comments below: I don’t know how else to do it. For me, I have queer kids. If I’m not standing up for queer kids or kids in the trans community then what the f**k am I doing? If I’m not standing up against ICE, then what the f**k am I doing? I don’t think it’s easy all the time. Melissa Barrera, who’s a beautiful actor, was fired for what she said after what started happening in Israel. It’s really f**king bulls**t and really hard and she’s on the right side of history. When they start coming after your job, sometimes things are worth it. When that happened to Melissa, the whole world didn’t pipe up. But she was a year early on what the f**k’s going on. But the whole world should have popped up and said, "She’s right." And they didn’t. And that’s brutal. I went back to do Scream, and I got called out. And I’m like, "Oh, f**k. That’s brutal. I feel bad about that. I feel ashamed about that. Because in that moment I was so excited to go back, I didn’t really think about Melissa and that journey. I didn’t say no. I’m embarrassed, that’s the truth… I blew that. I’m on the wrong side of history for that. I still like being in the movie [but] it may not have been the best idea. Below, see a video of Lillard answering the question during the event. The video was posted on TikTok by @cocteautriplets with the caption "Matthew Lillard being a better man than Ed Sheeran could ever be," which is a reference to the fact that Macklemore was recently dropped as the opening act for Ed Sheeran's ongoing tour after making pro-Palestine comments onstage. Melissa Barrera's firing is the most recent public issue for the franchise, which previously courted controversy when it was revealed that Neve Campbell would not be reprising her role as final girl Sidney Prescott in 2023's Scream VI after negotiations stalled and her asking price was not met. At the time, Lillard addressed the issue while on Twitter Spaces with Midnite Movie Club, saying, "Should Neve Campbell be paid for the work she's done in five movies of a franchise? Yes, because she's a female lead of one of the most successful horror franchises. [It's] infuriating." After Barrera's firing, her co-star Jenna Ortega, who played Sam's sister Tara Carpenter in Scream (2022) and Scream VI also dropped out of the project, later telling The Cut that "If Scream VII wasn’t going to be with that team of directors and those people I fell in love with, then it didn’t seem like the right move for me in my career at the time.” Director Christopher Landon (Happy Death Day, Freaky) also dropped out of the project, which was eventually retooled with Kevin Williamson at the helm and a new story that focused more on legacy character Sidney Prescott than the new Core Four characters of Sam, Tara, Chad (Gooding), and Mindy (Savoy Brown). When asked by Variety if she considered the returning stars in 2026's Scream 7 to be crossing the picket line, Barrera said, "Oh, one hundred percent. I think they all are. And they have to live with that. The only way they were able to make that movie after what happened was to nostalgia-bait as much as possible." Considering the fact that Scream 7 became the highest-grossing installment in the franchise, it is no surprise that Scream 8 is already in development (with Poker Face season 1 showrunners Lilla and Nora Zuckerman penning the screenplay). However, given the fact that the 2026 movie is still a hot-button issue five months after its debut, as highlighted by Lillard's recent comments, it remains to be seen if the movie's production company, Spyglass Media Group, makes efforts to rebuild bridges with the cast and crew before officially mounting the new movie. Release Date February 27, 2026 Runtime 114 Minutes Director Kevin Williamson Cast Neve Campbell Sidney Evans