Scream fans were overjoyed when it was revealed that Hayden Panettiere will be reprising her role as Kirby Reed, and the rest of the cast was right there with them.
In the fourth installment of the slasher franchise, released in 2011, her role became a fan favourite, co-starring with Emma Roberts, Rory Culkin, and cherished originals Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette.
While she appeared to perish at the hands of Ghostface, a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment in last year’s sequel showed that the movie buff is still alive and well – and ready to take on the masked assassin once more.
When asked about her return ahead of the premiere of Scream 6, her new castmates expressed their joy at being able to share the screen with the 33-year-old.
‘She’s such a pro, it was fantastic to watch her come back into a role that she portrayed 12 years ago, and it was like nothing,’ said Melissa Barrera, who portrays Sam Carpenter. She was dead set on it. She’s so nice, yet she’s such an industry titan.
‘I remember growing up watching her, even though she’s my age, so it was fantastic to be able to share the screen with her.
‘Having been in the fourth movie, it felt like she was a legacy character for us, even though we had also done one movie. We were doing our second movie together and continuing the franchise, which was fun.’
Tara Carpenter actress Jenna Ortega agreed: ‘I loved [Hayden]. What was that movie, Hood? Where she played Little Red? Oh, my God, it’s an incredible animated film.
‘I was a fan and she’s a lovely person.’
Mason, who portrayed Chad Meeks Martin in Scream 5, stated that he had a complete fan moment while working with Hayden after playing a computer game in which she voiced a character.
He also picked the sequel in which we first saw Kirby to be his favourite in the series.
‘I’m such a fan of Hayden, I keep saying it,’ he told us. ‘I grew up on this video game, Kingdom Hearts 2, and she played a character named Kairi. I fanned out immediately when I saw her, and it was really embarrassing.’
‘But at least I was living my candid true self and told her how I felt… She hasn’t spoken to me since…,’ he laughed, as co-star Jasmin Savoy Brown joked that Hayden probably ‘blocked his number’.
The latest sequel follows the Woodsboro gang as they go to New York for college and are pursued by Ghostface.
The entrance of the killer forces Kirby back onto the scene, along with Gale Weathers (Courteney), who is working in the city.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Hayden revealed where her character is in the film, saying, ‘She’s come a long way.
‘What happened to her has obviously impacted her life, and it sends her in a certain direction, but she’s still the same old Kirby at the heart of it. She’s just a little older, a little wiser, but just as spitfire-y, and snarky, and all that good stuff.’
Although returning as a “veteran” character, the Nashville alum admitted that she felt “left out” amid the new Woodsboro gang, having previously only worked with Courteney.
‘Yeah, I felt a little left out,’ the former Nashville star continued. ‘It’s true. I did feel a little like I had to find my way back into the new group because that crew had done the prior film. But they were all so welcoming.
‘It was interesting, they made me part of their family that I had already been a part of. [Laughs] So it was like an estranged aunt came back into the fold!’
Scream 6 is in cinemas now.
Source My Celebrity Life.