"You can't do a slasher movie as a TV series", says one of the characters in MTV's attempt to do just that with the Scream franchise. And maybe he's right if the terrible Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street shows are any indication. Last night during the MTV Movie Awards the first trailer for the Scream series was unsheathed like a bloody kitchen knife, some twenty years after Wes Craven's film first hit theaters.
Featuring none of the original cast and a bunch of bland actors who can be easily killed off and forgotten, the pilot episode appears to have the same skeptical, self-referential tone as the movie. The only big name seems to be Bella Thorne (The DUFF, Blended) in a scene that mirrors the opening murder in Craven's film.
If they want to do something really cool they'll kill off a major celebrity at the beginning of every episode. Just an idea. Otherwise this looks like every other lousy MTV soap, except occasionally somebody gets butchered. Come to think of it, that may make it worth watching. Scream airs on MTV on June 30th.
