Sidney Prescott was underused in Scream 2022, but there are many ways to give the franchise's first final girl more of a character arc in the sequel.

Scream 2022 introduced a diverse new cast of characters to the decades-long franchise, but some movie-goers felt the movie's original final girl, Sidney Prescott, deserved more screen time - here's how Scream 6 can bring her back to the forefront. The movie was certainly a hit that rejuvenated the franchise, and there are many who appreciated the film focusing primarily on new characters. However, a large part of the marketing was based on the return of the legacy cast, so it would make sense for Sidney to take more of the spotlight as the franchise continues. With Neve Campbell expressing interest in appearing in the sequel, some people are already wondering how one of horror’s most successful survivors might find herself up against Ghostface once again.

Every previous Scream film has centered around Sidney Prescott, so Scream 2022 making her a supporting role was a bold choice. The new Scream final girls, Sam Carpenter (Melissa Barrera) and Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega), showed audiences a few unique twists in their respective roles and that the series has legs to stand on besides Sidney’s. Scream 2022 even made a point to mention that just because another Ghostface pops up doesn’t mean Sidney should come running. It took the death of her lifelong friend, and legacy character, Dewey Riley (David Arquette) to bring her back to Woodsboro. So it stands to reason something equally as extreme and Sidney-centric would have to occur in the next film for the franchise’s first scream queen to be caught in the midst of another set of murders.

Scream 2022 revealed that Sam is Billy Loomis’s daughter as a result of him cheating on Sidney with Sam's mother while they were in high school. Scream 6 could introduce Sam's mother and play out a potential rivalry between the two former classmates. It was mentioned that Sam's mother was in love with Billy, so it’s possible her mother continued those feelings despite Billy’s murderous behavior. She may even begrudge Sidney for keeping Billy from her and resent Sidney for killing him.

Scream 6 could also expand on Sidney’s family since it was mentioned that Detective Mark Kincaid (Patrick Dempsey) from Scream 3 is now Sidney’s husband and father of her two children. The next Ghostface could have reason to target the families of the original Stab characters. The Scream 3 character of Mark Kincaid (Patrick Dempsey) was an interesting addition to the franchise, and his mention in Scream 2022 was no accident. Since Dempsey has star-power of his own, adding his character to the next Scream movie would not only make Sidney more relevant to the story, but it would give the film an even higher profile.

Another interesting plotline for the next Scream could be the introduction of a killer obsessed with Sidney who wants to kill for her. Previous killers have all wanted Sidney dead, but a new twist could be a character who holds Sidney in such high regard that they want to kill anyone who poses a threat to her life and legacy. Since Scream 2022 used the concept of toxic fandom as a motive for murder, the sequel could take that concept to the next level and combine it with a fan’s obsession with the Stab movie franchise’s primary final girl. This development could lead the killer to target characters from Scream 2022 as they threaten to pull focus from Sidney’s character in future Stab installments.

While some movie-goers are content to have Sidney Prescott take a backseat to the new cast and “pass the torch” to the new final girls, her presence in Scream 6 is all but guaranteed. Since she has been one of the most enduring protagonists in the entire horror genre, having her character take up more of the spotlight would likely be an asset to the franchise and help maintain the franchise’s high profile. Scream 2022 succeeded in part because it told the stories of new characters while continuing the stories of the legacy characters. As the new characters have now been introduced and established, the sequel might be the time for the Scream's legacy final girl to take the lead.

Next: Scream 6 Has The Perfect Setup (Because There's No Plan)