Scream fans were beside themselves when it was confirmed that Hayden Panettiere would be reprising her role as Kirby Reed in the upcoming sequel, after seemingly dying in the fourth film.

Her character became a firm fan favorite in the fourth outing, starring alongside Emma Roberts, Rory Culkin and beloved OGs Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox and David Arquette.

Although she appeared to die at the hands of Ghostface in 2011, a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it Easter Egg in 2022’s Scream 5 confirmed that Kirby is alive and well, with bosses announcing her return to the fold last year.

Discussing her comeback in a new interview after the teaser reveal, the 33-year-old couldn’t help but rave about her character.

‘She’s come a long way,’ she said. ‘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.’

Despite returning as a ‘veteran’ character, Hayden also confessed that she felt slightly ‘left out’ among the new Woodsboro gang, having only worked with Courteney in the past.

Hayden Panettiere reprised her role as Kirby Reed in Scream 6 (Picture: Facebook)

She previously starred in Scream 4 with Emma Roberts (Picture: Rex)

‘Yeah, I felt a little left out,’ the former Nashville star continued to Entertainment Weekly. ‘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 VI is slated to be released on March 10, with Courteney also returning beside Jenna Ortega, Melissa Barrera, Jasmin Savoy Brown and Mason Gooding – who all took part in last year’s ‘requel’.

There are also some new faces on hand to help – or hinder – the gang in New York as they try and escape Ghostface’s clutches.

Ghostface has swapped Woodsboro for New York (Picture: Paramount)

Samara Weaving, Dermot Mulroney, Tony Revolori and Jack Champion are just some of the names ready to cause chaos.

Melissa recently teased what to expect from the sixth instalment of the slasher franchise, explaining that directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett ramped up the blood and the scares.

‘There was a saying on set because Matt and Tyler were always asking for more blood and more sweat,’ she told Collider. ‘They always just wanted more. “More blood spritz” was the saying because they would just always want more.’

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‘With the last Scream, they were tip-toeing and trying to be very respectful of what the franchise had been up until that point and keeping their inner gory dreams at bay.

‘But with this one, they were like, “We’re going all out.”’

We’re already terrified.

Scream 6 will be released in cinemas on March 10.

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Ghostface is lurking…