Scream 6‘s bodega scene has led fans to imagine various characters Ghostface could square off against. The trailer for the newest entry in the slasher franchise, which is coming to theaters on March 10, featured a scene where Sam (Melissa Barrera) and Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega) are attacked by Ghostface in the middle of a busy bodega in New York City. When the bodega owner attempts to use a shotgun to fend off the killer, Ghostface murders the owner and takes the shotgun for himself, using it to aid in the hunt for the sisters, who survived the killings in the previous film, 2022’s Scream.
This scene from the Scream 6 trailer has captured the imagination of various horror fans across the Internet. One new popular meme in the horror sphere is to imagine who else Ghostface could face off against in a bodega, with fans positing battles with everyone from Taylor Swift to a bodega cat. Netflix even got in on the fun, using a shot of Millie Bobby Brown’s Stranger Things character Eleven stealing Eggos from a grocery store, saying “he doesn’t stand a chance.” Check out selected examples of the new meme below:
How Scream 6 is Leaning Into Its New York City Setting (Despite Not Filming There)
Much like previous slasher sequel Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan, which shot primarily in Vancouver with only a couple scenes set in the real Times Square, Scream 6 did not film in New York City. The entirety of the production took place in the Montreal area, though presumably the film will be using B-roll of New York City for many exterior shots. This means that it is unlikely that Ghostface or any of the surviving characters — which also include Chad (Mason Gooding) and Mindy Meeks-Martin (Jasmin Savoy Brown), Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox), and Kirby Reed (Hayden Panettiere) — will directly interact with some of the city’s most famous landmarks.
Despite this limitation, Scream 6‘s New York setting will still play an important role in the story of the film. That’s why scenes like this bodega sequence are so important and are already causing a stir in the fan community. By authentically recreating the smaller details of the city, Scream 6 can get away with not setting scenes in more recognizable locations like Times Square or Broadway. While this particular bodega isn’t iconic and recognizable, it still feels like a realistic part of the city thanks to the film’s production designer and set dressers prioritizing details that anyone who’s visited a New York bodega would be able to recognize.
The original Scream 6 teaser also pulled off a similar trick. Although the opening shots featuring city streets teeming with people dressed for Halloween could come from anywhere, the interior shot of a New York City subway train felt authentic, even though it is a Canadian recreation. It remains to be seen what other recognizable New York settings will fill the film, but audiences only have a few months left to wait and find out.
Source: Various (see above)
