It’s becoming increasingly evident that Kevin Williamson is distancing himself from the Scream franchise. Fans first noticed signs of this during the production of Scream 4, when Williamson stopped mentioning the project on his Twitter account. Over the summer, he even removed photos of himself working on the script, fueling speculation about his discontent with the franchise.

Now, thanks to insights from Still Screaming director Ryan Turek and journalist John Valeri, we have confirmation of another notable absence: Williamson will not be appearing in the upcoming Still Screaming documentary, which celebrates the history of the Scream franchise.

“I will definitively say that Kevin Williamson is absent from the project, but that’s not for lack of trying on our part,” Turek revealed. “I personally tried a number of angles—because I know a few people close to his camp—but I was frustratingly hit with a ‘No, thank you’ at every turn.”

The documentary, which aims to be a definitive exploration of the Scream phenomenon, feels incomplete without the screenwriter who helped revolutionize the horror genre with his sharp, self-aware writing.

This ongoing estrangement adds a bittersweet layer to Scream 4‘s release.