David Arquette says Wes Craven was "close in our hearts" during filming of new Scream film

It's already been almost a decade since the last entry in the series, Scream 4, was released in 2011, and in the time that's passed the franchise has suffered from various difficulties.

These include the death of Wes Craven, who had directed all four of the previous entries in the series, and the closure of The Weinstein Company in 2018.

But star David Arquette – who has appeared in every Scream film – has promised fans that the new film will be worth the wait, and said returning to the set was like a homecoming.

“I mean the fact that I’m a part of a film series that has lasted 25 years is really just a wonderful feeling," he exclusively told RadioTimes.com.

“It’s really easy to slip back into the characters, they’re very close to my heart and there’s something really exciting about those films for me, it changed the course of my life in general so it’s really fun to be in that world and do something. I felt very blessed.”

He went on to explain that Craven's influence was still felt on set, saying, "We really missed Wes Craven not being there since he passed, but he was close in our hearts while we filmed it and I think it’s going to be really great."

And he added that new directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, whose previous credits include the horror-comedy Ready or Not, were natural successors to Craven.

"They’re incredible," he said. "They were inspired by Wes Craven and they are filmmakers because of him partially, he was one of their heroes."

You can read more from David Arquette (starring in new comedy horror 12 Hour Shift - coming to UK Digital on 25th January), in an upcoming Big RT interview.

Scream will be released in cinemas in January 2022. Looking for something else to watch? Check out our TV Guide.