Jenna Ortega’s star power means Scream 6 could be taking a major risk with Tara’s fate. In addition to appearing in serial killer-based horror and thriller projects like You, Studio 666, and X, Jenna Ortega rose to prominence as a Scream Queen in 2022 due to her major role in Scream 5. After surviving numerous attacks from the two Ghostfaces in Scream (2022), her character Tara Carpenter is set to return for Scream 6 in March 2023.
While her role was already integral to the plot of Scream (2022) as Tara’s older sister Sam tried to stop her attacker, Jenna Ortega’s immense popularity after Netflix’s Wednesday inevitably changes the perception of her character’s future. Following Scream 5, Ortega took on the starring role of Wednesday Addams in Netflix’s adaptation of The Addams Family, which has now made her one of the most elite young actors in Hollywood, particularly in the horror genre. However, Scream 6 had already finished filming before Ortega’s popularity soared with Wednesday. Consequently, the slasher franchise didn’t have the hindsight to help secure its future by ensuring that Ortega’s character Tara survives Scream 6.
It Would Be Bad For Scream 6 To Kill Off Jenna Ortega’s Tara
Considering Tara was nearly murdered numerous times over the course of Scream (2022), her chances of survival aren’t great for Scream 6. This means that the film series risks losing Jenna Ortega shortly after her rise to incredible mainstream popularity, which is even more of a mistake given Scream has already lost Neve Campbell and David Arquette’s legacy power. Ortega’s massive popularity with younger audiences is the perfect way to keep the franchise alive for a new generation, but Tara’s death in Scream 6 would ignore this golden opportunity.
Scream 6 is already taking a big risk by leaving Woodsboro for New York City, with Tara, Sam, and the Meeks-Martin twins being the only members of the new generation returning for the sequel. Since the first five Scream movies were able to bring back Sidney, Gale, and Dewey, the franchise can still reasonably bring back at least three of the four young characters in future sequels. With Jenna Ortega now positioned as the biggest star of the young Scream cast, Tara is arguably the most crucial figure to keep around for more Ghostface attacks – even if that means maintaining a deuteragonist role like Courteney Cox’s Gale Weathers.
Why The Scream Franchise Should Keep Jenna Ortega Around
While Tara’s sister Sam (Melissa Barrera) was positioned as the new Sidney in Scream (2022), the better option would be to make Jenna Ortega’s character the franchise’s main final girl. Since Neve Campbell isn’t returning for Scream 6 (or potentially future sequels) due to compensation disputes, the franchise is truly relying on the younger cast for its longevity, with Jenna Ortega offering the biggest Scream Queen star-power. Following the record-breaking success of Wednesday on Netflix, Jenna Ortega has proven that she can reliably lead a major horror project, which is exactly what the Scream franchise needs.
Tara’s death would also mean losing Scream’s most bankable new actress, with Ortega’s presence likely contributing to better success at the box office. Additionally, since Tara’s role in Scream (2022) largely confined her to the hospital or action-based sequences, the film series has still yet to utilize Ortega’s full potential as an emotionally compelling, versatile Scream Queen actor. It would be a shame for Scream 6 to tease the lengths that Jenna Ortega could go in headlining the franchise only to kill off Tara, as her returning survivor character also offers a vast future in sequels as a young college student.
