Scream 6’s Courteney Cox Breaks Silence On Neve Campbell’s Absence

Scream 6’s Courteney Cox breaks her silence on Neve Campbell’s absence, expressing her disappointment not to be reuniting with her longtime co-star.

Audiences aren’t the only ones disappointed by Neve Campbell’s Scream 6 absence as Courteney Cox breaks her silence on the subject. The next chapter of the iconic slasher franchise will move the events outside of Woodsboro for the second time, following the new group of survivors coming under attack from a new Ghostface in New York City. Though Cox’s Gale Weathers will be back along with Hayden Panettiere’s Kirby, Scream 6 has already stirred up controversy for Campbell not returning as Sidney Prescott due to a reported pay dispute.

While speaking with Variety to discuss receiving her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Courteney Cox shared a little bit of insight for the highly anticipated Scream 6. When asked about Neve Campbell’s surprise absence from the sequel, the Gale Weathers actor admitted to missing working alongside her longtime co-star, though sent her support for her decision and teased her own encounter with Ghostface. See what Cox shared below:

I missed working with her, but I’m going to support whatever she feels is right. I have a really good scene with Ghostface and it was amazing. I’ve obviously been stabbed many times and all that, but this time, to work with Ghostface and not know who’s under the mask, it was a really fun. Usually by the time I’m getting stabbed, I know who it is.

Related: Every Way Scream 6 Can Handle Sidney’s Absence

Scream 7 Should Bring Back Neve Campbell

Cox becomes the latest of Campbell’s various co-stars from over the years to share their support for her absence heading into Scream 6. David Arquette, whose time as Dewey Riley came to an end in 2022’s Scream, noted her and the producers’ split decisions likely came down to business. On the flip side, Matthew Lillard and new stars Jasmin Savoy Brown and Melissa Barrera have all been enthusiastic in their defense of Campbell, questioning the decision not to pay the franchise’s lead star accordingly and its setback for gender equality in cast salaries.

Despite the turmoil surrounding her Scream 6 absence, the actor herself has proven diplomatic in discussing her potential return to the fold in the future. Just a month after her exit, Campbell confirmed that she would be open to coming back provided the offer presented is in line with “the value that I bring them” and that she does care about both the franchise as a whole and its new directing duo, Radio Silence’s Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett. With her being open to coming back, it seems like it would be a missed opportunity for a potential Scream 7 not to include Campbell.

Though franchise fatigue is something the Scream movies have been avoiding up to this point, the success of the 2022 sequel seems a good sign that Scream 6 will prove another hit and pave the way for another sequel. Given the trailers for the film have pointed towards a deadly confrontation between Gale and Ghostface, it would be interesting to see if Sidney rose up as a protector in all future Ghostface killings if her longtime friend does meet her end. Only time will tell how the film may set up Sidney’s return when Scream 6 hits theaters on March 10.

More: Why Sidney Isn’t In Scream 6Source: Variety