Sidney Prescott
Encyclopedia
Sidney Prescott is a fictional character
and the main protagonist
of the Scream series
of slasher films. The character was created by Kevin Williamson and Wes Craven
and is portrayed by Canadian actress Neve Campbell
. She first appeared in Scream
(1996) followed by three sequels: Scream 2
(1997), Scream 3
(2000) and Scream 4
(2011). The character appears in the Scream films as the target of a series of killers who adopt the Ghostface
persona, a ghost mask and black cloak, to pursue her. In each film, the Ghostface killers often murder people close to Sidney and taunt her by phone with threats and intimate knowledge of her life or the murder of her mother, leading to a final confrontation where the true killer is revealed.
The killers that target Sidney have varying motivations ranging from revenge in Scream to the fame that will come from killing her in Scream 2, due to the fame she herself has obtained as a survivor of the murder spree in the original film. She first becomes the focus of her boyfriend Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich
) and his friend Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard
), Billy seeking revenge for his mother's abandonment following his father's affair with Sidney's mother Maureen Prescott. Scream 3 later reveals that Billy learned of this affair through Roman Bridger (Scott Foley
), Sidney's half-brother, himself seeking revenge for his abandonment and rejection by Maureen, sparking the chain of events that permeate each film.
Drew Barrymore
was originally cast as Sidney Prescott but scheduling conflicts led to her taking a smaller role, with the lead being offered instead to Campbell, who at the time was starring in the TV show Party of Five
. She was hesitant to take another horror role after finishing work on The Craft
(1996) but took the opportunity as it would be her first leading role in a feature film
. Campbell reprised the role in Scream 2 and Scream 3 though her own scheduling conflicts meant she could only film for a short period of time while the third film was in production. This resulted in her character's role being reduced significantly from prior installments and focus was shifted onto the series' other lead characters, Gale Weathers and Dewey Riley. Campbell initially refused requests for her to return for Scream 4, with scripts written with her character's absence in mind, but ultimately agreed to return.
The character is depicted as an intelligent, resourceful young woman who slowly becomes stronger over the course of the series as she attempts to overcome the threats and deaths around her. Neve Campbell's role as Sidney Prescott has received significant critical praise throughout the series, earning her the title of Scream Queen
in the 1990s and won her the Saturn Award for Best Actress in 1997 for Scream and the MTV Award for Best Female Performance in 1998 for her role in Scream 2.
), Sidney is able to kill Stu and Billy and survive the events of the film.
Sidney's second appearance was in Scream 2
(1997) as a student at fictional Windsor College where a new series of Ghostface murders occur. The killers again taunt Sidney and murder her friends including Randy Meeks before her friend Mickey (Timothy Olyphant
) reveals himself as the killer and murders her new boyfriend Derek in front of her. Mickey states his motivation as the fame that will come from his exploits including the murder of Sidney and reveals his accomplice, Mrs. Loomis (Laurie Metcalf
), seeking revenge against Sidney for the death of her son Billy Loomis. Mrs. Loomis betrays and kills Mickey, intending to disappear without trace after killing Sidney, but before she can enact her plan Cotton Weary intervenes and shoots her through the throat, killing her and saving Sidney.
The third appearance of Sidney occurred in Scream 3
(2000) where another murder spree begins in Hollywood, with the killer leaving photos of a young Maureen Prescott at the scenes. Sidney, now a crisis counselor
for women, has been in hiding following the events of Scream and Scream 2 but is drawn to the set of "Stab 3", the film within a film based on Sidney and her experiences, after the new Ghostface discovers her location. Ghostface claims responsibility for the murder of Maureen Prescott and is unmasked as the director of "Stab 3", Roman Bridger, Sidney's previously unknown half-brother. Roman reveals that their mother was gang raped and impregnated with him during a two-year period where she moved to Hollywood to become an actress, before she met Sidney's father. After being given up for adoption, an adult Roman sought her out only for her to reject him. Roman began stalking Maureen, filming her adulterous liaisons with other men including the father of Billy Loomis and uses this footage to convince Billy to murder Maureen, unknowingly setting in motion the events of Scream and Scream 2. Sidney manages to defeat Roman, with Dewey's help and later move on with her life.
Sidney's fourth appearance was in Scream 4
(2011), set eleven years after the events of Scream 3. After returning to the town of Woodsboro to publicize her new book, "Out of Darkness" - a self help book about overcoming the events of her life -, a new Ghostface begins attacking the town and leaves evidence in Sidney's car. Becoming a suspect in the murders, Sidney stays in town with her cousin Jill Roberts (Emma Roberts
) and aunt Kate (Mary McDonnell
) but the family becomes embroiled in the Ghostface murder spree. Sidney tries to save Jill from being attacked only to discover that Jill is the killer with her accomplice Charlie Walker (Rory Culkin
), Jill hoping to recreate the events of Billy and Stu's murder spree to make herself the Sidney of a "new generation" with all the associated fame. Jill stabs Sidney and her accomplice Charlie Walker, before brutalizing herself to appear the "sole survivor", but after arriving at hospital she discovers Sidney has survived. When Jill attempts to finally kill her cousin, Sidney manages to shoot Jill through the heart.
after Barrymore herself approached the production, having read the script, to request the role and was signed to the film before a director had even been found. Wes Craven, after being hired as director, commented that he was able to have bigger actors in the film than his budget allowed for because of Barrymore's desire to be involved which he believed helped attract other big names to the production. While early development on the film took place however, Barrymore's schedule commitments meant she was no longer able to remain in the demanding leading role, but still wishing to take part she volunteered to play the smaller role of Casey Becker who dies early in the film, with her scene being filmed in five days. Following Barrymore's abdication of the role, actresses Alicia Witt
and Brittany Murphy
auditioned for the part. The production also offered the role to Reese Witherspoon
although she ultimately never auditioned. It was Canadian actress Neve Campbell who was given the lead of Sidney Prescott after Craven saw her in the television series Party of Five
, believing she could best embody a character who was "innocent" but also able to handle herself while dealing with the demanding physicality and emotions of the role. Campbell herself was reluctant to undertake a role in another horror film so soon after taking part in The Craft
(1996), but agreed to Scream as it would be her first leading role and she "adored" the character saying "She's a fantastic character for any kind of movie." Campbell and her on-screen boyfriend Skeet Ulrich
had previously starred together in The Craft which they believed helped make their performance of the relationship between Sidney and Ulrich's character, Billy Loomis, more natural.
On how she approached the leading role in the series, Campbell stated:
Kevin Williamson had submitted treatments for two possible sequels to Scream before the film was even released and so Campbell had been contracted for Scream 2 when she signed on to the original film as she played the only character guaranteed to survive the film. However, scheduling became an issue for Campbell and the production as, at the time, she was still starring in Party of Five.
For Scream 3, Craven insisted that convincing Campbell and the other principal cast to return was not a problem, but scheduling Campbell's availability with the film's production again became an issue, with Campbell starring not only in Party of Five but three other feature film
s. Her availability was limited enough that she was only available for 20 days of filming which resulted in a significantly reduced role for her character and a shift in focus to Cox and Arquette's characters of Gale Weathers and Dewey Riley respectively.
When production of Scream 4 was announced, nearly ten years after the last installment of the series, Campbell initially refused offers to reprise her role as Sidney, forcing early script drafts to be written in consideration of her absence while again shifting focus on to Cox and Arquette's roles. However, by September 2009, Campbell was confirmed as reprising her role in the film. Early versions of Williamson's Scream 4 script involved Campbell's character being attacked and killed in the opening, a key point of contention for Bob Weinstein, head of Scream developer Dimension Films
, who had it removed.
nomination. The following year, she went on to win the 1998 Best Female Performance for Scream 2 and received a second Best Actress nomination from the Saturn Awards, losing to Jodie Foster
for Contact
(1997). She received a third and final Best Female Performance nomination from MTV in 2000 for the character in Scream 3 but lost to fellow Scream series alum Sarah Michelle Gellar
for Cruel Intentions
(2000).
John Muir, author of Wes Craven: The Art of Horror, praised the development of Sidney Prescott in Scream 2 labeling her character, amongst others, "beloved".
Roger Ebert, heavily critical of the cast and film of Scream 3, singled out Campbell's role for praise saying "The camera loves her. She could become a really big star and then giggle at clips from this film at her AFI tribute". Harry Knowles
of Ain't It Cool News
was considerably less complimentary of Campbell, saying "She adds ZERO coolness. Zero talent. And Zero charisma to [Scream 3]."
Bryan Enk and Adam Swiderski of UGO ranked Neve Campbell as the 8th greatest Scream Queen
for her role as Sidney Prescott, saying "in the 1990s, Neve was pretty much the number-one scream queen around."
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
and the main protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
of the Scream series
Scream (film series)
Scream is a series of American horror slasher films created by Kevin Williamson and Wes Craven. The films star Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette. The series has grossed over $600 million in worldwide box-office receipts and consists, to date, of four motion pictures...
of slasher films. The character was created by Kevin Williamson and Wes Craven
Wes Craven
Wesley Earl "Wes" Craven is an American actor, film director, writer, producer, perhaps best known as the director of many horror films, particularly slasher films, including the famed A Nightmare on Elm Street and Wes Craven's New Nightmare, featuring the iconic Freddy Krueger character, the...
and is portrayed by Canadian actress Neve Campbell
Neve Campbell
Neve Adrianne Campbell is a Canadian actress. After beginning her career on stage, and on numerous commercials, she starred on the Canadian television series Catwalk. She then rose to international fame on the Golden Globe-winning 1990s television series Party of Five, playing the role of teenager...
. She first appeared in Scream
Scream (film)
Scream is a 1996 American slasher film written by Kevin Williamson and directed by Wes Craven. The film stars Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Drew Barrymore, and David Arquette...
(1996) followed by three sequels: Scream 2
Scream 2
Scream 2 is a 1997 American slasher film created and written by Kevin Williamson and directed by Wes Craven, starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Jamie Kennedy and Liev Schreiber, released on December 12, 1997 as the second installment in the Scream film series...
(1997), Scream 3
Scream 3
Scream 3 is a 2000 American slasher film created by Kevin Williamson, directed by Wes Craven and written by Ehren Kruger, starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox Arquette and David Arquette, released on February 4, 2000 as the third, and originally, concluding installment in the Scream film series...
(2000) and Scream 4
Scream 4
Scream 4 is a 2011 American slasher horror film and the fourth installment in the Scream film series. Directed by Wes Craven and written by Kevin Williamson, writer of Scream and Scream 2, the film stars an ensemble cast which includes David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Emma Roberts,...
(2011). The character appears in the Scream films as the target of a series of killers who adopt the Ghostface
Ghostface (Scream)
Ghostface is a fictional identity adopted by the main antagonists in the Scream series of slasher films. The character is voiced by Roger L. Jackson regardless of who is behind the mask...
persona, a ghost mask and black cloak, to pursue her. In each film, the Ghostface killers often murder people close to Sidney and taunt her by phone with threats and intimate knowledge of her life or the murder of her mother, leading to a final confrontation where the true killer is revealed.
The killers that target Sidney have varying motivations ranging from revenge in Scream to the fame that will come from killing her in Scream 2, due to the fame she herself has obtained as a survivor of the murder spree in the original film. She first becomes the focus of her boyfriend Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich
Skeet Ulrich
Bryan Ray Trout , best known as Skeet Ulrich, is an American actor best known for starring in the CBS drama Jericho as Jake Green and for portraying Billy Loomis in Scream...
) and his friend Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard
Matthew Lillard
Matthew Lyn Lillard is an American actor and producer. He is best known for his roles as Stu Macher in Scream, Stevo in SLC Punk , and Shaggy Rogers in the Scooby-Doo film series and the Animated reboot series.-Early life:Lillard was born in Lansing, Michigan, and grew up in Tustin, California...
), Billy seeking revenge for his mother's abandonment following his father's affair with Sidney's mother Maureen Prescott. Scream 3 later reveals that Billy learned of this affair through Roman Bridger (Scott Foley
Scott Foley
Scott Kellerman Foley is an American actor. He is known for roles in television shows such as The Unit and Felicity, and in films such as Scream 3...
), Sidney's half-brother, himself seeking revenge for his abandonment and rejection by Maureen, sparking the chain of events that permeate each film.
Drew Barrymore
Drew Barrymore
Drew Blyth Barrymore is an American actress, film director, screenwriter, producer and model. She is a member of the Barrymore family of American actors and granddaughter of John Barrymore. She first appeared in an advertisement when she was 11 months old. Barrymore made her film debut in Altered...
was originally cast as Sidney Prescott but scheduling conflicts led to her taking a smaller role, with the lead being offered instead to Campbell, who at the time was starring in the TV show Party of Five
Party of Five
Party of Five is an American teen drama television series that aired on Fox for six seasons, from September 12, 1994, until May 3, 2000.Critically acclaimed, the show suffered from low ratings and after its first season was slated for cancellation...
. She was hesitant to take another horror role after finishing work on The Craft
The Craft (film)
The Craft is a 1996 American supernatural teen horror film directed by Andrew Fleming and starring Robin Tunney, Rachel True, Fairuza Balk and Neve Campbell. The film's plot centers on a group of four teenage girls who pursue witchcraft and use it for their own gain...
(1996) but took the opportunity as it would be her first leading role in a feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
. Campbell reprised the role in Scream 2 and Scream 3 though her own scheduling conflicts meant she could only film for a short period of time while the third film was in production. This resulted in her character's role being reduced significantly from prior installments and focus was shifted onto the series' other lead characters, Gale Weathers and Dewey Riley. Campbell initially refused requests for her to return for Scream 4, with scripts written with her character's absence in mind, but ultimately agreed to return.
The character is depicted as an intelligent, resourceful young woman who slowly becomes stronger over the course of the series as she attempts to overcome the threats and deaths around her. Neve Campbell's role as Sidney Prescott has received significant critical praise throughout the series, earning her the title of Scream Queen
Scream queen
A scream queen is an actress who has become associated with horror films, either through an appearance in a notable entry in the genre as a frequent victim or through constant appearances as the female protagonist...
in the 1990s and won her the Saturn Award for Best Actress in 1997 for Scream and the MTV Award for Best Female Performance in 1998 for her role in Scream 2.
Appearances
Sidney Prescott first appeared in the film Scream as a teenager attending the fictional Woodsboro High School. After a series of brutal murders occur on the anniversary of her mother's death, the killer begins targeting Sidney herself with attacks and taunting phone calls. Her character has appeared in each successive film in the series, her role initially that of the victim but growing into heroine where she personally confronts each killer and defeats them.Films
Sidney Prescott's first cinematic appearance was in the film Scream (1996) as a seventeen year old in the fictional town of Woodsboro, California. During a spree of grisly murders, she begins to receive taunting and threatening phone calls from Ghostface, who claims to have knowledge of the brutal rape and murder of Maureen Prescott, Sidney's mother, which occurred one year prior to the events of the film, a murder that is blamed on Cotton Weary. Suspicion falls on several characters before both her boyfriend Billy Loomis and his friend Stu Macher are revealed to both be the killer. Billy states his motivation as revenge following his mother abandoning him over his father's affair with Maureen. With help from Gale Weathers (Courteney CoxCourteney Cox
Courteney Bass Cox is an American actress, she is best known for her roles as Monica Geller on the NBC sitcom Friends, Gale Weathers in the horror series Scream and as Jules Cobb in the ABC sitcom Cougar Town, for which she earned her first Golden Globe nomination....
), Sidney is able to kill Stu and Billy and survive the events of the film.
Sidney's second appearance was in Scream 2
Scream 2
Scream 2 is a 1997 American slasher film created and written by Kevin Williamson and directed by Wes Craven, starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Jamie Kennedy and Liev Schreiber, released on December 12, 1997 as the second installment in the Scream film series...
(1997) as a student at fictional Windsor College where a new series of Ghostface murders occur. The killers again taunt Sidney and murder her friends including Randy Meeks before her friend Mickey (Timothy Olyphant
Timothy Olyphant
Timothy David Olyphant is an American actor whose notable roles in television drama series include Deadwood as Seth Bullock, Justified as Raylan Givens, The Office as Danny Cordray, and Damages as Wes Krulik...
) reveals himself as the killer and murders her new boyfriend Derek in front of her. Mickey states his motivation as the fame that will come from his exploits including the murder of Sidney and reveals his accomplice, Mrs. Loomis (Laurie Metcalf
Laurie Metcalf
Lauren Elizabeth "Laurie" Metcalf is an American actress. She is widely known for her performance as Jackie Harris on the ABC sitcom Roseanne, Mary Cooper on The Big Bang Theory, the voice of Mrs. Davis in the Toy Story film series and as Debbie Salt in Scream 2...
), seeking revenge against Sidney for the death of her son Billy Loomis. Mrs. Loomis betrays and kills Mickey, intending to disappear without trace after killing Sidney, but before she can enact her plan Cotton Weary intervenes and shoots her through the throat, killing her and saving Sidney.
The third appearance of Sidney occurred in Scream 3
Scream 3
Scream 3 is a 2000 American slasher film created by Kevin Williamson, directed by Wes Craven and written by Ehren Kruger, starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox Arquette and David Arquette, released on February 4, 2000 as the third, and originally, concluding installment in the Scream film series...
(2000) where another murder spree begins in Hollywood, with the killer leaving photos of a young Maureen Prescott at the scenes. Sidney, now a crisis counselor
Crisis intervention
Crisis Intervention can be defined as emergency psychological care aimed at assisting individuals in a crisis situation to restore equilibrium to their biopsychosocial functioning and to minimise the potential for psychological trauma...
for women, has been in hiding following the events of Scream and Scream 2 but is drawn to the set of "Stab 3", the film within a film based on Sidney and her experiences, after the new Ghostface discovers her location. Ghostface claims responsibility for the murder of Maureen Prescott and is unmasked as the director of "Stab 3", Roman Bridger, Sidney's previously unknown half-brother. Roman reveals that their mother was gang raped and impregnated with him during a two-year period where she moved to Hollywood to become an actress, before she met Sidney's father. After being given up for adoption, an adult Roman sought her out only for her to reject him. Roman began stalking Maureen, filming her adulterous liaisons with other men including the father of Billy Loomis and uses this footage to convince Billy to murder Maureen, unknowingly setting in motion the events of Scream and Scream 2. Sidney manages to defeat Roman, with Dewey's help and later move on with her life.
Sidney's fourth appearance was in Scream 4
Scream 4
Scream 4 is a 2011 American slasher horror film and the fourth installment in the Scream film series. Directed by Wes Craven and written by Kevin Williamson, writer of Scream and Scream 2, the film stars an ensemble cast which includes David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Emma Roberts,...
(2011), set eleven years after the events of Scream 3. After returning to the town of Woodsboro to publicize her new book, "Out of Darkness" - a self help book about overcoming the events of her life -, a new Ghostface begins attacking the town and leaves evidence in Sidney's car. Becoming a suspect in the murders, Sidney stays in town with her cousin Jill Roberts (Emma Roberts
Emma Roberts
Emma Rose Roberts is an American actress, model and singer. She is the daughter of actor Eric Roberts and niece of Julia Roberts. Roberts became known for her role as Addie Singer in the Nickelodeon television series Unfabulous. She released her debut album, which also served as the show's...
) and aunt Kate (Mary McDonnell
Mary McDonnell
Mary Eileen McDonnell is an American film, stage, and television actress. She received an Academy Award nomination for her role as Stands With A Fist in Dances with Wolves, and she is also very well known for her performance as President Laura Roslin in Battlestar Galactica, the President's wife...
) but the family becomes embroiled in the Ghostface murder spree. Sidney tries to save Jill from being attacked only to discover that Jill is the killer with her accomplice Charlie Walker (Rory Culkin
Rory Culkin
Rory Hugh Culkin is an American actor and is the younger brother of actors Macaulay Culkin and Kieran Culkin.-Personal life:...
), Jill hoping to recreate the events of Billy and Stu's murder spree to make herself the Sidney of a "new generation" with all the associated fame. Jill stabs Sidney and her accomplice Charlie Walker, before brutalizing herself to appear the "sole survivor", but after arriving at hospital she discovers Sidney has survived. When Jill attempts to finally kill her cousin, Sidney manages to shoot Jill through the heart.
Casting
The role of Sidney Prescott was initially given to actress Drew BarrymoreDrew Barrymore
Drew Blyth Barrymore is an American actress, film director, screenwriter, producer and model. She is a member of the Barrymore family of American actors and granddaughter of John Barrymore. She first appeared in an advertisement when she was 11 months old. Barrymore made her film debut in Altered...
after Barrymore herself approached the production, having read the script, to request the role and was signed to the film before a director had even been found. Wes Craven, after being hired as director, commented that he was able to have bigger actors in the film than his budget allowed for because of Barrymore's desire to be involved which he believed helped attract other big names to the production. While early development on the film took place however, Barrymore's schedule commitments meant she was no longer able to remain in the demanding leading role, but still wishing to take part she volunteered to play the smaller role of Casey Becker who dies early in the film, with her scene being filmed in five days. Following Barrymore's abdication of the role, actresses Alicia Witt
Alicia Witt
Alicia Roanne Witt is an American film, stage, television actress and singer.-Early life:Witt was born in Worcester, Massachusetts. Her mother, Diane , is a junior high school reading teacher, and her father, Robert Witt, is a science teacher and photographer. She has a brother, Ian...
and Brittany Murphy
Brittany Murphy
Brittany Anne Murphy-Monjack , known professionally as Brittany Murphy, was an American actress and singer. She starred in films such as Clueless, Just Married, Girl Interrupted, Spun, 8 Mile, Uptown Girls, Sin City, Happy Feet, and Riding in Cars with Boys...
auditioned for the part. The production also offered the role to Reese Witherspoon
Reese Witherspoon
Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon , better known as Reese Witherspoon, is an American actress and film producer. Witherspoon landed her first feature role as the female lead in the film The Man in the Moon in 1991; later that year she made her television acting debut, in the cable movie Wildflower...
although she ultimately never auditioned. It was Canadian actress Neve Campbell who was given the lead of Sidney Prescott after Craven saw her in the television series Party of Five
Party of Five
Party of Five is an American teen drama television series that aired on Fox for six seasons, from September 12, 1994, until May 3, 2000.Critically acclaimed, the show suffered from low ratings and after its first season was slated for cancellation...
, believing she could best embody a character who was "innocent" but also able to handle herself while dealing with the demanding physicality and emotions of the role. Campbell herself was reluctant to undertake a role in another horror film so soon after taking part in The Craft
The Craft (film)
The Craft is a 1996 American supernatural teen horror film directed by Andrew Fleming and starring Robin Tunney, Rachel True, Fairuza Balk and Neve Campbell. The film's plot centers on a group of four teenage girls who pursue witchcraft and use it for their own gain...
(1996), but agreed to Scream as it would be her first leading role and she "adored" the character saying "She's a fantastic character for any kind of movie." Campbell and her on-screen boyfriend Skeet Ulrich
Skeet Ulrich
Bryan Ray Trout , best known as Skeet Ulrich, is an American actor best known for starring in the CBS drama Jericho as Jake Green and for portraying Billy Loomis in Scream...
had previously starred together in The Craft which they believed helped make their performance of the relationship between Sidney and Ulrich's character, Billy Loomis, more natural.
On how she approached the leading role in the series, Campbell stated:
Kevin Williamson had submitted treatments for two possible sequels to Scream before the film was even released and so Campbell had been contracted for Scream 2 when she signed on to the original film as she played the only character guaranteed to survive the film. However, scheduling became an issue for Campbell and the production as, at the time, she was still starring in Party of Five.
For Scream 3, Craven insisted that convincing Campbell and the other principal cast to return was not a problem, but scheduling Campbell's availability with the film's production again became an issue, with Campbell starring not only in Party of Five but three other feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
s. Her availability was limited enough that she was only available for 20 days of filming which resulted in a significantly reduced role for her character and a shift in focus to Cox and Arquette's characters of Gale Weathers and Dewey Riley respectively.
When production of Scream 4 was announced, nearly ten years after the last installment of the series, Campbell initially refused offers to reprise her role as Sidney, forcing early script drafts to be written in consideration of her absence while again shifting focus on to Cox and Arquette's roles. However, by September 2009, Campbell was confirmed as reprising her role in the film. Early versions of Williamson's Scream 4 script involved Campbell's character being attacked and killed in the opening, a key point of contention for Bob Weinstein, head of Scream developer Dimension Films
Dimension Films
Dimension Films is a motion picture unit currently a part of The Weinstein Company. It was formerly used as Bob Weinstein's label within Miramax Films, to produce and release genre films...
, who had it removed.
Reception
On her character of Sidney Prescott, Neve Campbell was praising, saying she "adored" the character and "She's a fantastic character for any kind of movie." In 1997, the Scream role won Campbell the Saturn Award for Best Actress and an MTV Movie Award for Best Female PerformanceMTV Movie Award for Best Performance
This is a following list of the MTV Movie Award winners and nominees for Best Performance from 1992 onward. In all but two years, the awards are separated into Male and Female categories.-1992:...
nomination. The following year, she went on to win the 1998 Best Female Performance for Scream 2 and received a second Best Actress nomination from the Saturn Awards, losing to Jodie Foster
Jodie Foster
Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster is an American actress, film director, producer as well as a former child actress....
for Contact
Contact (film)
Contact is a 1997 American science fiction drama film adapted from the Carl Sagan novel of the same name and directed by Robert Zemeckis. Both Sagan and wife Ann Druyan wrote the story outline for the film adaptation of Contact....
(1997). She received a third and final Best Female Performance nomination from MTV in 2000 for the character in Scream 3 but lost to fellow Scream series alum Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Prinze , known professionally by her birth name of Sarah Michelle Gellar , is an American actress, singer and executive producer...
for Cruel Intentions
Cruel Intentions
Cruel Intentions is a 1999 American drama film starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Reese Witherspoon, and Selma Blair. The film is an adaptation of the 18th-century French epistolary novel Les Liaisons dangereuses by Laclos and is set among wealthy teenagers living in modern New York...
(2000).
John Muir, author of Wes Craven: The Art of Horror, praised the development of Sidney Prescott in Scream 2 labeling her character, amongst others, "beloved".
Roger Ebert, heavily critical of the cast and film of Scream 3, singled out Campbell's role for praise saying "The camera loves her. She could become a really big star and then giggle at clips from this film at her AFI tribute". Harry Knowles
Harry Knowles
Harry Knowles is known for his website called Ain't It Cool News. Knowles is a member of the Austin Film Critics Association.-Biography:...
of Ain't It Cool News
Ain't It Cool News
Ain't It Cool News is a website founded and run by Harry Knowles, dedicated to news, rumors and reviews of upcoming and currently playing films and television projects, with an emphasis on science fiction, fantasy, horror, comic-book and action genres...
was considerably less complimentary of Campbell, saying "She adds ZERO coolness. Zero talent. And Zero charisma to [Scream 3]."
Bryan Enk and Adam Swiderski of UGO ranked Neve Campbell as the 8th greatest Scream Queen
Scream queen
A scream queen is an actress who has become associated with horror films, either through an appearance in a notable entry in the genre as a frequent victim or through constant appearances as the female protagonist...
for her role as Sidney Prescott, saying "in the 1990s, Neve was pretty much the number-one scream queen around."
See also
- Laurie StrodeLaurie StrodeLaurie Strode is a fictional character in the Halloween horror film series, portrayed by actresses Jamie Lee Curtis and Scout Taylor-Compton. She appears in six of the present ten Halloween installments, first appearing in John Carpenter's original 1978 film...
- Nancy Thompson
- Final girlFinal girlThe final girl is a trope in thriller and horror films that specifically refers to the last woman or girl alive to confront the killer, ostensibly the one left to tell the story...
External links
- Sidney Prescott at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- Sidney Prescott at the Horror Film WikiWikiaWikia is a free web hosting service for wikis . It is normally free of charge for readers and editors, deriving most of its income from advertising, and publishes all user-provided text under copyleft licenses. Wikia hosts several hundred thousand wikis using the open-source wiki software MediaWiki...