‘Scream 7’ Ending, Explained

Spoilers for Scream 7 are below!

Scream 7 is back to deliver a new round of slasher thrills. The horror franchise has been going strong in recent years thanks to Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, who directed Scream 2022 and Scream VI. While the duo chose not to return, who better to replace them than franchise architect Kevin Williamson? Williamson wrote the first four films, and with the aid of horror master Wes Craven, they crafted a lasting slasher franchise that is back with a new killer behind the mask.

Neve Campbell is back as Sidney Prescott, with the story recentering on the original protagonist after she skipped Scream VI. When a new killer emerges, Sidney’s nightmare begins fresh as her daughter becomes a potential victim of the latest Ghostface’s killing spree. Courteney Cox, David Arquette, and even Matthew Lillard are back with a new list of suspects. So who is ultimately hiding behind the haunting Ghostface mask in Scream 7, and why?

Who Is the New Ghostface?: ‘Scream 7’s Killer & Motive, Explained

Paramount Pictures

Sidney is living as peacefully as she can, with her husband and three kids in a small town. When a new Ghostface pulls her into another spree of murders, the movie wastes no time in setting up a red herring. Lillard’s Stu Macher makes an appearance, ditching the audio phone calls for a video chat that shows his scarred face as he taunts her and her family. To set the record straight, Stu is still very much dead, and the movie eventually reveals that the calls to Sidney were created using an AI deepfake designed to look like Lillard’s character.

Stu isn’t the killer, but, as in past Scream films, more than one person wears the Ghostface mask throughout the movie. One is even killed early on, with the face under the mask being a complete unknown. While there is shock value in that, it presents a third throwaway killer who was a patient from a psychiatric facility. This killer served more as a clue Sidney and Gale could follow, pointing them toward the other two killers, the larger masterminds who looped him in.

One of the killers is Ethan Embry’s Marco, who served as an orderly at the psychiatric facility, where he met Jessica, played by Anna Camp. Jessica is the true driving force behind the killing spree, as she was inspired by Sidney’s book to fight back against her abusive husband, killing him. She also got away with it, but ended up having a mental breakdown when Sidney disappeared from the public eye, leading to her time in the psychiatric facility, where she met Marco.

Jessica becomes convinced that Sidney’s life has meaning because she is a final girl who thrives on the chaos. Jessica thought that by killing Sidney, she could end Sidney’s life as a thriving final girl and create a new one in Tatum. The film also explains that Marco used to work in AI, using his knowledge to create the videos of Stu. Jessica is a fan who became obsessed, which Scream has done before. However, rather than being obsessed with the in-universe Stab films or the true-crime elements, Jessica has fixated on Sidney herself and what makes her a continuing, special target. Her twisted logic sets the spree in motion, but it’s also a rather weak motive.

‘Scream 7’ Takes a Stab at Rewriting Fan Theories

Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott in Scream 7

The opening sequence features two deaths, with Ghostface also burning down Stu’s house. The deaths ultimately don’t play into the rest of the movie, with the entire sequence being about burning down the past to build a new legacy. Scream 7‘s opening delivers on the bloody kills, but also acts as a more symbolic scene. Still, from early on, the movie makes great strides in subverting audience expectations, even using fan theories against them.

One theory that has proven true across several Scream films is the “Blue Flannel” theory, which posits that several killers wear the same pattern. Scream 7 also featured characters in those patterns, sending fans to speculate that they were the killers. McKenna Grace’s Hannah was one of the prime suspects in the trailer because of her flannel skirt. The movie almost acknowledges the fan theory by making sure her outfit is noticeable before she becomes the first of Tatum’s friends to die, putting the speculation to rest.

Scream 7 is also fully aware that fans would assume Stu would be the killer if he were alive, so it leans into that, unmasking him within the first 30 minutes. Still, the movie likely knew fans wouldn’t buy any explanation that brought him back to life, which is why his presence is explained by AI. That’s also how Scream 2‘s Nancy Loomis, Scream 3‘s Roman Bridger, and Dewey actor David Arquette are able to make brief appearances.

The third killer, who was unmasked quite early, also bucks clichés, as it’s something that likely wouldn’t have been seen until the end. The moment adds a new layer of questioning to the plot and keeps things interesting. This is especially true as the third act closes in, with Ghostface almost feeling like an inescapable presence.

Scream 7 is built around Sidney and her family. When the opening scene teases burning down the house, it’s all about burning down the past and what made Sidney who she is today. The movie parallels many aspects of the original, such as Tatum’s boyfriend coming through the window and her being tied to the chair in the backyard. For Tatum to be the new final girl, it makes sense that she would experience much the same things her mother did. However, the movie sees the two surviving together, with Jessica and Marco dead.