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Matthew Lillard reveals the key things Wes Craven filmed but cut from Scream to avoid an NC-17 rating
How Scream managed to avoid an NC-17 rating, as told by Matthew Lillard
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If you thought Scream was intense, then you should see the original cut. The 1996 Wes Craven horror classic was originally given an NC-17 rating by the Motion Picture Association (MPA). Needless to say, this would’ve hurt the film at the box office, so Craven made some cuts….no pun intended. During a Scream spotlight panel at Megacon 2025, Stu Macher actor Matthew Lillard spoke about the film’s original cut.
“We originally were rated NC-17, and the things that changed it from an NC-17 to a hard R was the fact that the kid in the beginning, Drew’s boyfriend’s guts used to fall from his lap onto the ground, which apparently that makes it too much. And then the other crazy thing is that when we’re stabbing each other, sorry spoiler alert, there was a sound effect of the blood dripping, and that sound effect turned it from an R to an NC-17, which is crazy right?”
If you’re curious about the NC-17 cut, an unrated version is available on DVD. Just make sure the kids are in bed before you pop it on.
Here's how to watch the Scream movies & TV show in order.
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