After more than ten years, the Scream franchise is back. The slasher that mixed self-aware jabs at the horror genre with genuinely terrifying thrills has captured the hearts of both horror aficionados and casual viewers alike. The new entry, despite some significant changes behind the scenes, is just as much a love letter to the genre as the rest of the franchise.
If you’re wanting to catch yourself up on everything known about SCREAM (yep, it’s written exactly like that), we’ve compiled all the information you ought to have before you watch the film. Here’s everything you need to know about the secretive but promising sequel (without spoilers!).
SCREAM Trailer
An official teaser for the film was released in October, giving fans a taste of Ghostface’s mysterious return. Whether you’re like me and have been obsessively rewatching the trailer, or haven’t seen it yet, check it out below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beToTslH17s&t=1s
If you’re hoping for more footage, we have good news! A new teaser that asks what makes a good horror villain was also released ahead of the movie's premiere. Check it out below. Maybe you’ll start thinking about why certain slashers stick to your head long after you watch their films.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mP-ct-1kNn8
What Is SCREAM About?
The Scream franchise has always embraced horror trends of the day, and this fifth entry is no exception. This time, it’s a riff on horror reboots that serve as legacy sequels to classic films. It also seems like so-called prestige horror could be an influence from the dark and eerie footage audiences have already seen. Without giving away too much of the plot, we can say that it centers around the 25th anniversary of the Woodsboro Massacre, with a new killer donning the Ghostface mask.
What Is SCREAM Rated?
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If you thought that the franchise would change its rating to appease a wider audience, think again. SCREAM was officially rated R in early December for “strong bloody violence, language throughout and some sexual references.”
Which Characters Are Returning in SCREAM?
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You can’t have a Scream movie without the franchise’s core three protagonists. Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox), and Dewey Riley (David Arquette) are all back in Woodsboro once again for another round of murders. They are joined by Judy Hicks (Marley Shelton), Dewey’s police partner introduced in Scream 4. Roger L. Jackson also reprises his franchise role as the sinister and modulated voice of Ghostface.
Who Are the New Additions to SCREAM?
Along with the legacy characters, a bevy of new characters are also introduced in SCREAM. As revealed before the movie's release, sisters Sam (Melissa Barrera) and Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega) play critical roles in the resurgence of Ghostface. The first trailer shows Tara being terrorized by the serial killer, but that opening scene might not be the last you see of her.
Some new characters also have interesting connections to characters franchise fans have already met. Judy has been revealed to have a teenage son appropriately named Wes (Dylan Minnette), while siblings Chad (Mason Gooding) and Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown) bear the combined surname Meeks-Martin. We might not know who Martin is, but it's clear that they are the children of Martha (Heather Matarazzo) and the nephew and niece of the still-dead Randy (Jamie Kennedy).
The other new characters are quite interesting in their own right. Sam and Tara have partners that also get tangled up in the new murders: Richie Kitsch (Jack Quaid) and Amber Freeman (Mikey Madison), who may or may not want to kill for love. Mechanic Vince Schneider (Kyle Gallner) could be a red herring or the perfect killer, while Chad’s girlfriend Liv McKenzie (Sonia Ben Ammar) might have ulterior motives.
Obviously, we're not going to reveal the intentions or motivations behind this new Ghostface. That would be cheating. And in any case, with a cast like this, the ultimate reveals are sure to be killer.
How Does SCREAM Plan to Honor Wes Craven?
Without Wes Craven, there wouldn’t have ever been a Scream franchise. The iconic horror director had previously directed all of the franchise’s entries until this new one. He, unfortunately, passed away in 2015 at the age of 76.
SCREAM directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, who previously co-directed Ready or Not, haven't talked about how the movie honors Craven’s legacy. However, the seeds are already there for a tribute unlike any other. Perhaps the most obvious nod is Minnett’s aforementioned character being named Wes, although there are other ways they’re making sure the trailblazer’s spirit is kept alive in their film. In an interview last year with Collider’s Perri Nemiroff, Gillett said that this has “been top of mind” since the beginning of the project.
“It's a tightrope to walk, right? To be respectful and find ways to tie a new story into an old lineage,” said Gillett. Despite this obstacle, the duo knew they had achieved what they considered to be the perfect balance when they read the script by Jamie Vanderbilt and Guy Busick.
“All I can say is that we would have had a tremendous amount of anxiety stepping into this franchise because Wes, the level of respect we have for his work, it's really impossible to fully express what that is,” he said. “But when we read the story that Guy and Jamie put on the page, there was something so undeniably new and also something so undeniably Scream about it, and we just knew that we had to be a part of it and that it was walking the tightrope in precisely the right way.”
Why Does SCREAM Have a New Distributor?
It is kind of a miracle that a new film in the Scream franchise is even happening. SCREAM is the first film in the franchise to be distributed by Paramount Pictures. Dimension Films, a subsidiary of Miramax, were the original distributors of the franchise. Spyglass Media Group purchased the rights to the Scream franchise in November 2019, setting the franchise’s theatrical return in full motion.
Unfortunately, you cannot talk about Miramax without talking about The Weinstein Company. After the latter being shuttered due to a staggering amount of sexual assault allegations made against co-founder Harvey, Miramax and Dimension Films were purchased by ViacomCBS, the deal reaching completion in April 2020. Two months later, Spyglass and ViacomCBS-owned Paramount Pictures struck a deal to officially bring us SCREAM.
Where Can I Watch the Other Films in the Franchise?
If you’re looking to hold a Scream marathon, you thankfully won’t have to go scrambling to find the other films in the franchise. You can stream the first three films on Paramount+, Pluto TV, and The Roku Channel. Scream 2 is also available on Youtube, while you can also watch Scream 3 on Amazon Prime. Finally, you can only stream Scream 4 on Tubu. The franchise is also available for purchase anywhere you can buy digital movies, such as iTunes and Vudu.
Will SCREAM Be Slashing Its Way to Theaters or Streaming?
Don’t expect SCREAM to be streaming on Paramount+ any time soon. The film had its premiere on January 14, 2022, and has been released exclusively in theaters. Despite similar blockbuster horror A Quiet Place Part II hitting Paramount+ 45 days after its theatrical release, there are seemingly no plans to enact a similar streaming debut in the works.