Rumors had once circulated that Scream season 3’s release date was set for early 2018, but that plan has clearly fallen apart — and for legal reasons. Now it’s aired and on Netflix! Last updated June 2019.
Now that this season has aired, all eyes are on Scream season 4! Hit the link to learn what we know about the next season.
Scream season 3 was first announced in October 2016. However, we later learned in April 2017 that season 3 would act as a reboot and bring in a new showrunner. In September, Tyler Posey joined the cast as filming got under way.
Although filming wrapped a few months later in November 2017, little information was surfacing online.
On June 24, 2019, MTV finally announced that Scream season 3 was set to air over three nights on VH1 beginning July 8. As of August 2019, Scream season 3 is now streaming on Netflix! Read our review of season 3.
Why was there such a longggg delay?
Rumors circulating in August 2018 indicated that Scream season 3 could premiere in October 2018, although a formal announcement was never made. Notably, THR did confirm that MTV was planning on releasing Scream season 3’s six episodes over the course of three nights.
Meanwhile the show had, unfortunately, gotten caught up in legal drama. Lantern Entertainment had purchased The Weinstein Co. following scandal and bankruptcy, but several deals had to be renegotiated in the process.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Netflix, who had previously streamed season 1 and 2 following their airing on MTV, wouldn’t have to stream Scream season 3.
Without the lucrative Netflix partnership, the release of season 3 anywhere was still up in the air. This is particularly frustrating when you consider that season 3 was shot in 2017, and there was no talk about when we would ever see it.
There could have been two possibilities for the holdup. One, MTV could’ve been trying to renegotiate with Netflix or possibly find another streaming service to host the show after it aired. Two, with MTV going in a new direction, it’s possible the network was trying to figure out how the show will fit into their updated slate.
‘Scream’ season 3’s release date was in doubt
Details about the season 3 release had been scarce. When I chatted with Tyler Posey in October 2017, the cast had already been filming for about a week. The series was supposed to premiere sometime in March 2018, but then there was complete radio silence about when we would finally see it.
Scream season 3 was supposed to reboot the entire franchise, bringing in a new set of kids, including Teen Wolf‘s Tyler Posey, and a whole new dynamic. While fans of the previous two seasons felt a bit jaded that the characters they had fallen in love with would be gone, it was clear MTV was trying to pull out all the stops to breathe new life into the series.
Without knowing the exact details of the agreement to premiere Scream season 3, it was hard to tell what kind of effect this will have on the show moving forward. After all of this runaround, it’s unlikely we’ll get a Scream season 4, but you just never know.
In addition to that, MTV had recently created their own studio — aptly named MTV Studios — which could also affect this show and several others moving forward. Now, it’s less about getting these shows to air on MTV and more about getting their scripted series on any network that’ll buy it from their studio.
A change of networks to VH1 was a shame, as Scream was a good fit for the same platform that hosted Teen Wolf, but season 2’s falling numbers indicated fewer people were tuning in for the series’ sophomore season. Then again, that could have less to do with interest and more to do with poor marketing.
As a fan of the first two seasons, and as someone who is tentatively looking forward to the next one, I hope it ends on a high note. Even if this is the last season we’ll ever get, I’d rather see it get the attention it deserves instead of sitting in limbo for all of eternity.
As for the show’s plot, it’s very much still a mystery. What we do know is that Posey and Mary J. Blige are new cast members. The latter is joining Scream season 3 as Sherry Elliot, the mother of Deion Elliot (pictured below).
We want to hear your thoughts on this topic!
Write a comment below or submit an article to Hypable.