34 Elm Street is the former Prescott Residence, a fictional residence located in Woodsboro, California. It was bought by businessman, Neil Prescott and his late wife, Maureen Prescott. Their daughter, Sidney Prescott, lived there from her birth in 1979 until approx. 1997.
The residence only appears in the original Scream (1996 film), but is re-mentioned in the fifth film by its street name. A deleted scene from the original film revealed its full address to be "34 Elm Street". While deleted, it was introduced to canon continuity later, with the explicit, dialogue reference in the fifth film, as a nod to old Scream trivia.
After Maureen was murdered in 1995, Neil and Sidney continue to reside there. Neil would often go on away on business often leaving his teenaged daughter home alone.
After the first murder spree, Sidney goes off to Windsor College and Neil stays there at the house on his own, but never home often as he takes many business trips due to his career.
History
1995
One day, Maureen answers the door to her past. Her long-lost first born son, Roman, comes to her door asking about her and she slams the door on his face saying he is "Rina's" child.
Maureen invites Cotton Weary over while Neil is away on business and they have sex. Billy and Stu come into the house and kill Maureen and frame Cotton with his coat. Sidney sees someone wearing the coat when she comes home and sees someone leaving believing that it was Cotton whom raped and murdered her mother.
Scream (1996)
As Sidney is in her room typing something for school one night with her window wide open, it begins to thunder. She hears something outside having heard a noise outside and as she goes to look, Billy grabs her shoulder causing her to scream. She lets him in, but hides him as her father heard her scream. She claims she is alright and he leaves. Billy and her talk briefly and have a romantic moment before he leaves.
The next day after school, she arrives home. She is later talking to her best friend, Tatum Riley, on the top floor patio about coming over since her father is out of town which she accepts. After hanging up, she is nervous looking around (possibly feeling unsafe) and locks the doors behind her. She packs and has more than enough time to wait and she attempts to watch TV which reminded her of her mother's death which she ultimately turns the TV off and rest.
Tatum calls and wakes her up from her nap past 7PM, and apologizes for her practice running late. She gets a phone call from the killer and thinks it's her friend, Randy Meeks. As the phone call isn't Randy and became threatening that he was at her front door, she goes out onto her front porch to check. The killer sneaks in when she isn't looking. The killer threatens to kill her like her mother angering Sidney. She curses them, hangs up the phone and locks her front door. The killer pops out of the coat closet and attacks Sidney.
Sidney fights the killer back and runs upstairs and barricades herself in her bedroom and contacts the police through her computer. The killer trying to push his way in her room and then abruptly gives up and leaves. Just then, Billy pops through her window again and comforts her. A phone drops from his pocket and she suspects him and runs downstairs and through the front door right into Dewey Riley and the other officers that have arrived for her complaint.
Sidney continues to live with her father in the house after the killing spree finishing high school and leaves to go off to college.
Scream 2 (1997)
Amid the 1998 Windsor College Murders, Neil still resides there, but is away on business a lot according to Debbie Salt in a scene in Scream 2 when they are considering his involvement in the murders.
Scream 3 (2000)
While not actually being her house, Sidney was lured to the cancelled Stab 3: Return to Woodsboro (2000) incomplete set version of her house that looked identical to her original house. Her father still resided in the house during this time. (It is likely Neil would be very cautious, leaving the house to visit his daughter in Northern California due to her being in hiding.)
Scream (2022)
Tara Carpenter answers Stab movie trivia and reveals Sidney Prescott lived on Elm (a reference to one of the old scripts where Sidney was to type her address "34 Elm Street" after being attacked by Ghostface, which was cut for timing, now introduced to Canon).
Trivia
- The Scream films never re-explore the Prescott residence after the original movie.
- It is unknown who Neil or Sidney sold the house to.