With Halloween approaching and the upcoming Scream VII on the horizon, I decided to binge the entire Scream franchise—from 1996’s genre-resetting original to 2023’s bloodier, glossier Scream VI. Some entries are some of the best horror movies of all time, holding up even decades after release. Other entries–looking at you, Scream 3–Not so much. But through the meta-commentary, fake-out deaths, and increasingly elaborate who-dunnits, a few things still completely rule. So here’s what still absolutely slaps about the Scream series, and what doesn’t quite hold up to scrutiny.
