SCREAM 7 Brought Back Matthew Lillard’s Stu Macher, but There Was a Stronger Story to Tell

I had a good time with Scream 7. It’s an entertaining entry in the long-running horror franchise and there’s plenty for fans to enjoy. But when it comes to the movie’s biggest hook, the return of Stu Macher, the story never quite reaches the potential it sets up.

After nearly three decades, Matthew Lillard finally returns to the franchise as Stu Macher, one of the original Ghostface killers from Scream. His comeback follows the earlier return of Skeet Ulrich, who reprised Billy Loomis in Scream (2022) and appeared again in Scream VI.

That storyline connected directly to the new generation through Billy’s daughter Sam Carpenter, played by Melissa Barrera.

Stu’s presence in Scream 7 plays out very differently. This time the story leans into the past, tying the character to another franchise icon, Neve Campbell, who returns once again as Sidney Prescott.

Throughout the film, Stu appears in a series of video calls, taunting Sidney and promising more violence to come. The mystery hangs over the entire movie. Is Stu somehow still alive after all these years, or is something else going on?

By the time the ending rolls around, the truth is revealed. Stu isn’t back from the dead. The person tormenting Sidney is using AI to recreate him, meaning Stu Macher remains very much dead in the canon.

It isn’t a shocking twist. Many fans guessed the AI deepfake angle long before the movie hit theaters. Predictability doesn’t automatically ruin a reveal, but the bigger issue is that the movie never digs deeper into the idea.

And that’s where the real missed opportunity sits.

Lillard himself is fantastic in the role, even as a digital imitation of the character. He slips right back into Stu’s chaotic personality like no time has passed, mixing creepy threats with that unhinged sense of humor fans remember from the original film. It’s clear he’s having a blast playing the character again, and he steals every scene he’s in.

Unfortunately, the story surrounding him feels thin.

Using AI to resurrect a dead character could have opened the door to some interesting commentary. AI is already a hot topic in Hollywood. A horror movie about someone weaponizing AI to manipulate victims and revive killers from the past seems like a perfect setup to explore those fears.

Instead, the movie barely scratches the surface.

If they weren’t going to bring Stu back for real, which is what I was hoping for, this is what they should’ve leaned into. The franchise has always thrived on meta commentary, and this was a perfect chance to lean into that tradition.

Stu’s possible survival has been debated by fans for almost 30 years. That speculation even started way back when Lillard briefly appeared as a random partygoer in Scream 2, which fueled theories that he somehow survived the first film.

Scream 7 could have played directly into that long-running fan theory culture. It could’ve explored the expectations fans create around franchises and how movies try, or fail, to meet those expectations. The series has touched on fandom before, especially in Scream (2022), but Stu’s return was a golden opportunity to take that idea even further.

Another path would’ve been leaning into nostalgia itself. Horror franchises love bringing characters back, and Scream knows that better than most. Sidney Prescott returning once again already taps into that idea. Stu’s return could have been used to comment on the endless cycle of legacy characters coming back for another round.

But the movie never really pushes any of those ideas.

There’s even a version of events where Stu actually survived. That possibility was explored, and a coda confirming he was alive was filmed. The idea was ultimately scrapped after negative reactions from test audiences, so they ruined that for us.

Even for a franchise that has bent reality a few times, Stu surviving a TV dropped on his head and multiple stab wounds might have been a stretch, but still!

Considering how much fun Lillard is on screen, I can’t help but wonder if committing to the wild idea would’ve been more satisfying than the half-step approach the film takes.

Another option might have been connecting Stu more directly to the film’s killer. When Anna Camp’s character Jessica is revealed as the murderer, I half expected a twist that she was somehow related to Stu. A sister, cousin, or family member seeking revenge would’ve been a familiar trope for the series, but it would’ve at least given the character a stronger motivation.

Instead, Jessica’s reasons boil down to reading Sidney’s book and being angry she wasn’t in New York. That reveal doesn’t carry the same weight the movie seems to think it does.

Stu Macher’s return had been rumored, speculated about, and hoped for by fans for decades. Seeing Lillard back in the role is undeniably fun. He hasn’t lost any of the chaotic energy that made Stu such a memorable villain in the first place.

But when the credits roll on Scream 7, it’s hard not to feel like the film had a great idea sitting right in front of it and never fully took advantage of it.

With Scream 8 almost guaranteed to happen at this point, the franchise probably won’t get another chance to take a real stab at bringing Stu back.