On August 30, 20-year-old Australian Scream fanatic and creator of scream-movies.com, Ashley Tenace was relaxing at home when she received the devastating news that her hero, Wes Craven, had died of brain cancer at age 76.

 

“It’s still so hard to believe it's real. It's particularly difficult because I interacted with Wes a lot online and he was always so supportive of my website and knew how much I loved his films. It's sad to think he's not around anymore, but he's left behind a legacy that will live on forever,” Tenace says.

 

Popular 21st century horror often includes ghosts, monsters, blood and gore. Not often does modern horror include the psychological, realistic twist that Wes Craven’s Scream franchise perfects. Scream is an American horror series created by Craven and Kevin Williamson. The series included four films that were released from 1996-2011. The four films made more than $500 million U.S. at the box office and now MTV is attempting to scare a whole new generation with a very similar masked killer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers are recreating Craven’s legacy through a new TV show. MTV premiered Scream: The TV Series two months before the filmmaker’s death. The new TV series is created by Jay Beattie, Jill E. Blotevogel and Dan Dworkin. The show instantly gained popularity and was picked up by Netflix shortly after its first episode. Social media, cyber-bullying and cellphones are big contributions to the remake’s story that weren’t seen in the original.

 

Tenace considers herself a “walking, talking Scream dictionary.” Noticing that there weren’t any online outlets dedicated to the series, Tenace started her fan-based personal website in April 2011, before the release of Scream 4.

 

Tenace states that the website, which is updated every day, quickly became a success and gained attention from Scream cast members and even Wes Craven himself when he wished the website a happy third birthday on Twitter in 2014.

 

“It was only a few years ago that I watched the movies with some of my closest friends and I became obsessed within minutes. There was something about the cast, about the movie, the rush it gave me. It was the start of something special,” Tenace says.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Remakes come with many difficulties, including impressing dedicated fans of the original series. Tenace’s favourite Scream movie is the first film, which was released in 1996.

 

“It's a film that redefined horror and captured a magic that can't ever be redone again. These days, a lot of movies are based around the gore and paranormal. I always believe there is more to a horror movie than blood, guts and ghosts,” Tenace says.

 

The Scream fanatic didn’t expect to enjoy the remake as much as she did.

 

“Initially I was a little concerned. As such a big fan of the movies, I am very protective of them and was afraid the show wouldn't be able to live up to the legacy left behind,” she says.

 

After seeing the show, Tenace eagerly awaited a new episode every week. She says that the show is drastically modernized, although could be improved.

 

“There is room for improvement. I very much love the show and everything about it. I love it's small references and similarities to the movies and it's subtle nods. But there is still a lot they can do,” states Tenace. 

 

RELATED ARTICLE:

http://www.metacritic.com/tv/scream-2015

 

Steven Morris, horror film buff from Wiarton, ON., is also pleased by the new remake of Scream. Morris is a fan of Craven’s many creations and believes the show does the film justice. Morris took to Scream’s fan page on Facebook to express his enjoyment.

 

“I like the series because it's spooky. I like seeing Ghost Face jump out of nowhere and kill [characters] off one by one. I love the suspense,” he says.

 

Morris says his favourite character from the TV series is Aubrey, a character who opens up the first episode of the season as the victim a cyber-bullying incident, resulting in the first murder. “I just hope she’s not the killer in the next season,” Morris says.

 

Horror has changed many ways in the past 20 years, resulting in creators of Scream: The TV Series having to recreate the cast and storyline to make it more attractive for the modern eye.

 

“The generations these days are so different to those when Scream came out,” Tenace says. “Their interests are different so movies need to be different. It's going to be hard to please everyone.”

 

Stephanie Davidson from Toronto, ON is author of stephnotstephanie.com and a fan of Craven’s original Scream series. Davidson turned off MTV’s Scream remake before the end of the first episode.

 

“It felt sanitized and lacking in the self awareness that made the originals great,” she says.

 

Davidson has re-watched the original series many times, enjoying the fact that it winked at fans without pandering to the audience.

 

“Because it's meta, it both critiques and pays homage to classic horror tropes. The inclusion of comedy and turning that critiquing onto earlier films in the series helps as it doesn't come across mean-spirited. The original is 20 years old and still holds up quite well,” Davidson says.

​

Scream: The TV series’ second season is to premiere April 20 on MTV. Watch full episodes of Season 1 here.