“Scream” fans have been spreading rumors for years that perhaps Matthew Lillard could return as Stu Macher one day but the original writer says that’s not what he intended…
Every time a new “Scream” movie is set for release, fans of the horror franchise start clamoring for clues that could set up a major reveal before the film ever hits theaters.
Perhaps the biggest rumor that has perpetuated among longtime “Scream” fans is that Matthew Lillard’s character Stu Macher, who appeared in the original “Scream” in 1996 didn’t actually die when Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) dropped a television on his head (and that was a 90s television that weighed a ton, not some flat screen version from today).
As soon as the first trailer for “Scream VI” was released, the rumor mill started swirling again that Stu Macher would return from the dead to haunt the kids who managed to survive the events in “Scream 5.” While anything is possible, especially considering there’s a whole new creative team working on the “Scream” movies these days, original writer Kevin Williamson says it’s just not possible.
“No, he’s dead,” Williamson told Collider when asked about Stu’s fate. “I think that [rumor] started because of the college scene, the frat party scene [in ‘Scream 2’] because he’s standing in the background. He just came to visit set that night.”
Yes, Lillard can be seen very briefly as a background character during the party scene early in “Scream 2,” which led to reactions that maybe Stu wasn’t actually dead and he was still coming after Sidney after he and Billy Loomis were thwarted at the end of the original “Scream.”
It turns out, Lillard just happened to pay a visit to set and director Wes Craven obviously stuck him in the background for a fun cameo but not necessarily a hint that he was returning.
Considering the “Scream” franchise has consistently found new and creative ways to link back to the original crime — including the twist in the previous film that revealed that Billy Loomis actually had a daughter — it’s not all that surprising that fans might believe Stu somehow survived and now he’s making a comeback.
The only problem with Stu suddenly reappearing in “Scream VI” is that sadly Neve Campbell would be returning for this upcoming sequel after she was unable to reach an agreement with the studio on financial compensation that met with what she felt was deserved for an appearance in a sixth consecutive film. In other words, Stu’s biggest object for revenge won’t even be in this new film.
That said, there are other legacy “Scream” cast members appearing in the new movie including Courteney Cox returning as Gale Weathers and Hayden Panettiere returning as Kirby Reed from “Scream 4,” which also had no connection to the original killers.
For now we’ll just have to let the speculation continue about who is behind the latest series of murders in “Scream VI” and whether or not that will eventually tie back to a previous film in the franchise.
