Scream just doesn’t seem to die, and maybe its original Ghostface didn’t, either. Matthew Lillard made waves recently when he reunited with his original Scream co-star Drew Barrymore on her daytime talk show, stressing that his character, Stu Macher, was “definitely alive.” The last time we saw Stu, he was bleeding out after being stabbed too deeply by his accomplice in the murders, Billy Loomis, in their attempt to look like victims. While we saw hallucinations of Loomis (played by Skeet Ulrich) in recent installments of the franchise, we haven’t seen Stu — though he was expected to play a major role in Scream 3 before a national tragedy changed everything.
“On The Drew Barrymore Show, I said Stu was still alive. And listen, I’ve always said Stu’s alive,” admits Lillard. “I don’t know anyone out there who’s like, ‘I don’t want any part of any future in the sequels or this franchise ever again.’ There’s a world in which he is alive.” He explains:
“I mean, originally, in the third sequel, [
Scream
writer] Kevin Williamson was like, ‘Yeah, he’s alive. He’s running kids from from prison, like he’s having kids do horrible things while he’s in prison.’ And the reason that didn’t go is Columbine High School happened right before we went into production, and justifiably so, they changed the entire story around. So there’s a world in which Kevin thought he was alive. And there’s definitely a world in which the last team that did
Scream 5
and
6
thought he was alive.”
As for Lillard’s future with Scream? It doesn’t seem like he’ll make a surprise appearance in the next film. “I would love to be alive, if it makes sense. But at the end of the day, Scream does not need Matthew Lillard as Stu in it. It’s fine. But, you know, a boy can dream.”
How Matthew Lillard Can Return to Scream as Stu
It makes sense that Lillard’s character was written to return for Scream 3. In fact, it’s surprising that he hasn’t returned at all, considering how the franchise prides itself on featuring its original characters (at least the ones that haven’t died, but even ones who did, as shown with Skeet Ulrich’s Loomis). Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Jamie Kennedy, Liev Schreiber, and others have appeared in multiple installments.
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So how would Lillard return? Well, Stu might have been saved by medical intervention; we never saw him die. Considering he was a teenager in 1996, there’s a chance that he could be released after 30 years. With the right lawyer, an argument could be made for criminal insanity, and the blame could be strategically placed on the deceased Billy Loomis. It would be interesting to see Stu emerge somewhat healthy from a mental hospital after 30 years of medication and psychiatric work, as a man who genuinely wants to make amends (but is immediately a suspect when people star dying). Or Stu could just pull a Michael Myers and break out of the mental institution in order to kill again. Does Matthew Lillard have a preference?
“That is, without a doubt, for somebody above my pay grade,” laughs Lillard. “I am NATO on that. I am not attached to outcome, if it’s a, b, c, or anything in between. The only thing that matters is that I think the fans would love it. I think the fans would get a big kick out of it, and I think it would be fun to do. Outside of that, it’s up to the higher powers.”
You heard the man, higher powers (aka directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, or writers James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick). In the meantime, Scream 7 is set to be released on February 27, 2026.