Scream 6's Director Teases A Big Risk With The Changes To Ghostface's Mask

On the morning of December 14, Paramount Pictures premiered a short teaser trailer for the sixth entry in the "Scream" film franchise, consisting largely of a scene in which the sequel's new incarnation of Ghostface antagonizes protagonists Sam (Melissa Barrera), Tara (Jenna Ortega), Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown), and Chad (Mason Gooding) on a New York City subway train.

While this constitutes the first footage of "Scream 6" ahead of its 2023 release, various details circulated ahead of time have helped provide fans with some idea of what to expect from the upcoming sequel beyond what's showcased in this teaser. For example, Hayden Panettiere is coming back for "Scream 6" to reprise the role of Kirby Reed, a character she previously portrayed in the fourth "Scream" movie. However, longtime "Scream" franchise lead Neve Campbell is not returning for "Scream 6," after failing to receive an offer of what she felt would be a fair salary for her performance. When asked about Campbell's departure, Ortega highlighted the gory effects in "Scream 6," promising that they will help distract from the absence of the film series' most important legacy character.

Another major change to the "Scream" formula in the upcoming sixth entry is the appearance of its Ghostface's mask, which for the first time will become cracked and worn. In an interview published in conjunction with the release of the new teaser trailer, the directors of "Scream 6" hinted at the reasoning behind altering its killer's iconic mask.

Around the time that Paramount Pictures debuted its "Scream 6" teaser trailer, Entertainment Weekly published an interview with directorial duo Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin in which they elaborate on some of what sets "Scream 6" apart from its predecessors. At one point, Gillett and Bettinelli-Olpin touch on the fact that Ghostface's mask changes at some point in the movie — in the teaser trailer footage the character appears the same as before, while in promotional images as well as a photo Entertainment Weekly published feature the character's signature façade is deteriorating.

"It will all make sense in the context that you see it in the movie," said Gillett of the new mask. "That was another one of the really interesting risks and creative approaches in this movie. It's meta in a different way, and the mask very much factors into that." Bettinelli-Olpin then emphasized that the decision to alter Ghostface's appearance was not arbitrary but meaningful in some manner.

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Jenna Ortega described Ghostface in "Scream 6" as an unprecedentedly brutal version of the character. "I think that this is probably the most aggressive and violent version of Ghostface we've ever seen," she said. Of course, fans will have to wait until "Scream 6" premieres in theaters on March 10, 2023 to fully learn just what makes this new version of Ghostface so different from their predecessors.