Whither Wes?

First we reported that Wes Craven's next project would be Sunflower. Then the L.A. Times announced that Scream 4 was slated by Dimension Films to start filming in May. Here's the first sign that he wasn't yet attached to the film: he didn't say that he was going to start filming in May, just that Dimension had plans. The word (ie: rumor) up until that point Scream 4 was to be the first in a new trilogy of films. That may sound preposterous considering Craven's age but Craven protested: My goal is to die in my 90s on the set, say, 'That's a wrap,' after the last shot, fall over dead and have the grips go out and raise a beer to me. Right. So. Recap time. Dimension is making Scream 4. Craven wants to direct lots and lots more movies. He is old. He will be older. He will make old movies. Get it? Got it? Good.

Now! Craven just tweeted - yes, he tweets; so does George Romero! - this: "SCREAM 4 - LA Times has it wrong. I'm still in talks but nothing has been finalized." So either some people at Dimension are trying to hype up the project to a reputable print outlet without Craven being officially attached yet. Or...nobody knows what's going on with Wes Craven, including Craven. I tend to think it's the former. He's old, yeah, but he's not that old. I mean, look: his tweets look like they were actually tweeted by him. " Made it to work in one piece on the Vespa. My faith in LA drivers is renewed! See? He's tweeting about trivial matters, like not getting killed by L.A. motorists. Based on that tweet alone, there doesn't seem to be any reason to panic over what Craven's doing next. If it's Scream 4, bully for Scream fans. If it's Sunflower, bully for horticulturalists with a strange sense of humor. It's win-win, really.