'Scream: The TV Series' Deserved a Proper Season 3

It's controversial to discuss this series if you're a Scream fan, primarily because of the major differences between it and the film franchise, but Scream: The TV Series isn't that bad. After Scream 4 (2011) was considered a disappointment at the box office, an MTV series was born and the premiered on June 30, 2015. But the series doesn't follow or have any link to Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) and her fellow survivors. Instead, it follows a teen girl named Emma Duvall (Willa Fitzgerald) who lives in a fictional town called Lakewood. The town's blood soaked history, a new string of murders, and how she's linked to the past leads Emma down a dangerous path.

The absence of Sidney, Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox), Dewey (David Arquette) and the other beloved characters in the Scream franchise is certainly a turn-off for some people. However, this series isn't meant to replace those characters or the stories woven throughout the films. It's a slasher series that takes elements from the films, all while doing its own thing. Does Emma have the same impact as Sidney? No. Though, it doesn't hinder one's potential enjoyment of what is a relatively gory show.

Just like many modern TV shows, Scream's first season ran for 10 episodes. Meanwhile, the second season ran for 14 because of the two-part Halloween special. During the first season there's quite a bit of mystery that's built up, it's not inherently obvious who the killer is. There are several red herrings, and that's often the modus operandi of Scream or any other slasher series or film. Including Emma's former best friend, Audrey (Bex Taylor-Klaus) and other Lakewood townspeople.

After plenty of murder, trauma, and disaster, one of the killers is revealed to be the sister Emma didn't know she had, Piper Shaw (Amelia Rose Blaire). The reveal is an homage to Scream 3 and Sidney finding out she has a half-brother who also happens to be the killer. Piper's motivations are very much bitter like Roman's, but before she's killed, she hints at a deranged surprise for Emma.

Fast-forward to next season and 4 months later in the show, the killings start up again. Only this time they are more gruesome and ruthless. And the killer reveal is quite heartbreaking as well as shocking for Emma, who didn't see it coming. Nor did some of the audience because sometimes the most obvious suspects aren't the killers.

The entire season is spent uncovering more of Emma and Audrey's past, has gruesome deaths that you might not expect from an MTV series, and the Halloween two-part special is a lot of fun. It's a step up from the first season, and the killer reveal is absolutely an homage to the first Scream. One of the main differences is that Emma doesn't deliver the final blow like Sidney does in the original. Whether that's disappointing or not is relatively subjective.

Considering Emma's boyfriend and secret lover of Piper, Keiran (Amadeus Serafini) is revealed to be the second killer and is later murdered in prison, there was every opportunity to continue from there. Scream season 3 could have revealed a new killer or turned one of the Lakewood survivors bad. But partially due to the decline in ratings and MTV wanting a refresh as a result, Scream rebooted…unsuccessfully. Not even the voice of Roger Jackson could save it from the end result.

Instead of focusing on the characters that people may have become attached to in the first 2 seasons. Season 3 is about a new set of characters, an entirely different plot, uses the actual Ghostface (voiced by Roger Jackson) costume, and has a more diverse cast. The season is set in Atlanta and follows on a football player named Deion (RJ Cyler) who becomes tangled up in a murder mystery. Unfortunately, the acting is rough, the writing isn't good, and the killer motivations are downright insulting to true horror fans. If they had rebooted with Emma and the gang, it might have been a good or at least enjoyable season.

Unfortunately, the prioritizing of ratings is why Scream season 3 (aka Scream: Resurrection) ended up being the only season of the rebooted timeline. Unsurprisingly, the Weinstein Company was in a dispute with Netflix regarding the contract. And that's the main reason it wasn't renewed for another reason. Regardless, the decision to reboot was unwise and proved to be fatal in a reception perspective.

The first two seasons have a certain charm to them and while it wasn't perfect, it's rewatchable and there are always new things to notice. In fact, it became a Netflix comfort watch for myself over time, and it was a shame to see it removed from streaming altogether. There was no official season 2 DVD release, and finding season 1 on physical media is nearly impossible.

Yet it's a series that people do occasionally talk about and wish there had been a proper season 3. The ending leaves fans with a lot of questions, and it would have been intriguing to see at least one more season. At least to wrap up the plot threads.

What would another season have looked like? A proper season three involving the characters from the first two seasons could have explored Emma and everyone else in college. They could have gone the route of Scream 2 and had a string of murders, maybe copycat kills, be the primary plot. And then Noah (John Karna) could have firmly uncovered who killed Keiran. If they wanted to go a surprise route, then Emma and Audrey could have ended up together.

We'll never know what would have become of Emma after all the trauma, whether Audrey would stay with her girlfriend, whether Brooke (Carlson Young) would mature more and maybe realize she doesn't need a relationship. There will always been a level of “what if” with the show, and those “what ifs” won't be addressed because the show isn't going to be revived. It's just a shame when a series initially an anthology, it's incredibly disappointing to drop them and start fresh with new people. Horror anthology series like American Horror Story or Slasher even connect other seasons to one another.

As stated earlier, Scream isn't and was never a perfect show, but it's not nearly as bad as people like to say it is. There are certainly worse horror shows to throw on for a simple rewatch. No matter what those who've seen it might think, a decent season 3 would have made a world of a difference. And the original story ended way too prematurely to not wish it had gone differently.