“Do you like scary movies?”
Originally conceived as a bloody send-up of the slasher subgenre, 1996’s Scream revitalised the modern horror landscape through a daring mix of loving homage, formula subversion, serious scare fest and witty self-satire.
It’s no hyperbole to state that director Wes Craven and writer Kevin Williamson’s efforts changed everything with the introduction genre savvy characters, who knew what kind of story they were trying to survive, and the launch of knife-happy Ghostface.
Turning 30 this year, the original has spawned a long-running franchise that has been celebrated for its scares, meta-commentary, and its willingness to evolve with the times with each new film.
After a troubled production, cast and director departures and much fan backlash, the seventh instalment of the influential series hits theatres this week, marking the return of both original screenwriter Williamson (who is now behind the camera) and star Neve Campbell, who sat the last one out due to contract disputes.
Not long to find out where Scream 7 will sit in the pantheon of Scream films... Before we find out, Euronews Culture has ranked all the Screams from worst to best.
Spoilers have been kept to a minimum, but some entries do reveal Ghostface identities – you've been warned.
6) Scream 3 (2000)
"This is great! Ten more murders and we can publish a calendar..."
Every franchise needs a dud and for Scream, it came in 2000 for the then-conclusion to the original trilogy.
Often referred to as “the watered-down one”, everything about Scream 3 is sub-par: the underwhelming opening, the distracting celebrity cameos, the caricatural characterisation of franchise favourites, the sanitized kills, Courtney Cox’s disastrous bangs, and a final reveal which threatened to retcon the original’s established mythology... It’s a mess and a missed opportunity, as the premise of taking the protagonists to Hollywood to add a further layer to the series’ meta-commentary - and positing that the misogynistic studio system has its crucial role in creating monsters - was promising.
However, leave it to screenwriter Ehren Kruger (the man who went on to write three Transformers film for Michael Bay and utterly foul up 2017’s Ghost in the Shell) to deliver a terrible script. His efforts couldn't match the talent of original series writer Kevin Williamson, who was unavailable to pen this one. His original idea for the trilogy capper would have featured the return of original killer Stu (Matthew Lillard) tasking a group of high school disciples to be the new Ghostfaces, all from his prison cell. However, following the Columbine massacre in 1999, the idea of high school killers was axed - alongside the more violent content.
Scream 3 ’s only redeeming factor? Parker Posey, of course. She plays a vainglorious version of Courtney Cox’s Gale Weathers, and steals every scene she’s in. Otherwise, this third instalment only serves to explain why it was the last entry in the series for over a decade.
5) Scream VI (2023)
"I got it wrong again. Fuck this franchise!"
Scream moves to New York! Scream ditches Sidney Prescott! Scream inexplicably gets roman numerals!
Following the solid Scream revival in 2022, the survivors now live in the Big Apple, where Ghostface plans to slice, dice, and leave behind the DNA of past killers at the crime scenes.
New York, new rules? Hardly. Despite an inventive cold open, there weren’t many risks taken with the established formula, and the location change only reminded viewers of Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan. Shudder.
The whole idea of doing a “sequel to the requel” fell flat, with a failure to craft some smart meta-critiques. Worse, this was the first Scream instalment without original Scream Queen Neve Campbell – and Melissa Barrera playing original killer Billy Loomis’ long-lost daughter was not up to filling her shoes.
The less said about Billy continuing to come back in hallucinatory form, the better.
Granted, the murders in Scream VI rank among the series’ most brutal, but when they only lead to a drawn-out and convoluted ‘it’s a family affair’ finale which bordered on parody, the overall feeling was: “What was the point?”
4) Scre4m (2011)
"What's your favourite scary movie?"
"Bambi."
Eleven years after Scream 3, Wes Craven returned to apply his deliciously cynical (but loving) perspective on reboots, and soft-rebooted Scream. It worked. Alongside Williamson, he updated the series for a younger generation without sacrificing the core themes of intergenerational trauma and yearning for your 15 minutes of fame.
Billy and Stu played on media hype; Mickey wanted his show trial; Roman sought immortality through movie-making; Scre4m ’s Jill, brilliantly played by Emma Roberts, ruthlessly craved infamy within a social media landscape defined by delusion and entitlement. Moreover, the script upended the traditional notions of the hallowed Final Girl trope through her character, addressing notions of victimhood and the insidious nature of fame.
Sure, the tension and the kills weren't as potent or gory as they could have been, and the supporting players failed to leave much of a lasting impression (aside from standout Hayden Panettiere). That said, Scre4m remains a worthy revival – one which managed to satirize reboots while functioning as one. It ended up being Wes Craven’s final Scream film before his death, so there's also an added emotional component to watching this one.
3) Scream (2022)
"Not quite a reboot, not quite a sequel, like the new Halloween, Saw, Terminator, Jurassic Park, Ghostbusters, fuck, even Star Wars. It always, always goes back to the original!"
After another 11-year break, the pressure was on for 2022’s confusingly titled Scream (aka: Scream 5), the first film in the series not directed by Wes Craven. The horror genre had evolved, gaining more acceptance and praise in the mainstream with the rise of so-called “elevated horror” - a handy but problematic term that stupidly applies a value system which dismisses other horror films as less sophisticated when they’re anything but.
Still, the question remained: Was the Scream franchise still relevant in a horror landscape it helped to rejuvinate?
Ready Or Not directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett proved that it was, achieving a tricky balancing act between keeping a healthy dose of reverence for the original alive and moving the franchise forward. They did so by focusing on the concept of a “requel” - as James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick’s screenplay dubs it. A combination of reboot and sequel, the juggling act featured all the meta satire necessary for a new generation to get on board (this time aimed at toxic fandom), while featuring enough carefully judged nostalgia through legacy characters so that OG fans didn't feel excluded.
That said, a lot of criticism was levelled at the film for doing David Arquette’s Dewey dirty, but his death was effective and confidently upped the stakes.
The newcomers fared well too, with Jenna Ortega proving she could do more than just goth-aloof (Wednesday), Melissa Barrera managing to be less stiff than in the 2023 sequel, and future Oscar winner Mickey Madison bringing enough deranged energy to make Scream just pip Scre4m to the third podium spot.
What a shame Scream VI was such a let-down.
2) Scream 2 (1997)
"Are you suggesting that someone is trying to make a real life sequel?"
"Who would want to do that? Sequels suck!"
Following the success of the first film, producers wasted no time in greenlighting a sequel – which arrived just one year later. While there was every reason to fear this was a rush job / cash-in, screenwriter Kevin Williamson and director Wes Craven had other plans.
They set out to skewer the very notion of sequels and proved that second instalments don’t have to pale to the original. By flipping the script and adding more character development (survivor guilt and the aftermath of trauma), Scream 2 worked because it wasn’t afraid to take its self-awareness seriously. The campus setting was an inspired choice, as was the introduction of the Stab franchise – meaning that Scream movies now had their very own in-universe Scream movies.
Add some dencent tension, a meatier role for the much-missed Randy (Jamie Kennedy), and a Friday the 13th homage for a reveal that deepens themes of revenge, female trauma and intergenerational wounds (shout out to Laurie Metcalf, who was an inspired choice at Mrs. Loomis), and you’ve got a smart, funny, gory and necessary companion piece to the original.
1) Scream (1996)
"Some stupid killer stalking some big-breasted girl who can’t act, who’s always running up the stairs when she should be going out the front door.... It's insulting."
Of course it was going to be Scream for the top spot... As Sidney says in Scre4m : “Don’t fuck with the original!”
It’s no stretch to affirm that the original Scream will never be topped. Some franchise instalments will come close, but it will take a lot to match the impact and legacy of a film that stands as a benchmark in the history of horror.
Prior to 1996, the slasher had become a bygone subgenre that was more defined by its campness rather than its scare factor. Scream took the slice-and-dice formula established by John Carpenter’s Halloween (1978) and revitalised it as a meta whodunnit. Sorry, whostabbedit. More than that, it treasured the genre, trusted audience members to get the references and staples, deconstructed them, added deeper commentary, and took viewers on ride that was both serious and playful. And very quotable.
Scream is not only a great horror film on its own merits – with an ingenious screenplay, assured yet vicious direction, and impeccable casting (featuring the birth of a new Scream Queen in the shape of Neve Campbell and the two best Ghostfaces in the franchise, played by Skeet Ulrich and Matthew Lillard); it ushered a brand new era of horror which has resonated through the decades.
30 years on, it remains the franchise highpoint and arguably the most influential horror film since Halloween. Here’s hoping that this year’s seventh chapter lives up to its legacy. With Kevin Williamson and Neve Campbell returning, there's every reason to be hopeful.
"Everything has led to this," according to the final trailer... We'll be right back.
Scream 7 is out in cinemas this week.
