Every 'Scream' movie, ranked from worst to best

Scream 7 lands solidly at the bottom of this list for many reasons. The film catches us up with Sidney Prescott Evans in her small town, where she lives with her husband Mark (not Kincaid), teen daughter Tatum, and her two younger kids. Thirty years after the original Ghostface attacks, new killers don that infamous mask and set their sights on Tatum, who desperately wants to know her mother and have her fiery strength. Outside of Neve’s performance as Sidney and a few cool setpieces, there’s nothing that stands out in this film at all. The killers are forgettable with nonsensical motivations, the teen ensemble cast is dreadfully one-note, and its commentary on AI and current media culture was thin at best. 

6. Scream VI

The only installment in the franchise to not include Sidney, Scream VI takes the slicing and dicing to New York City. It’s a couple of years after Sam and Tara Carpenter and their crew faced Ghostface in Woodsboro, and everyone is just trying to move on. Well, everyone except Sam, who seems to have some deep rooted draw to homicidal tendencies. Scream VI takes some interesting swings, like revealing someone wearing the Ghostface mask early and having three killers in play.

And this film has some of the best set pieces that we’ve seen in a long time, like the Stab theater shrine, the subway, the bodega, and more. But, a lot of it feels like territory that we’ve tread before, especially in terms of killers’ motivations and a connection to a previous killer. Still, solid performances all around, the return of Kirby Reed, some inventive/brutal kills, and a satisfying ending for the Carpenter sisters make it an enjoyable enough watch. 

5. Scream (2022)

Scream (2022) revived the franchise after over a decade of hiatus, passing the primary final girl torch to Sam Carpenter. We also get to see a touch of a new era of Sidney as a mentor and an experienced survivor. This fifth installment delivers on the franchise’s meta vibes and pays homage to the original, down to the boyfriend being the killer and the third act at the Macher house. Packed with mostly well-placed humor and Easter eggs, it certainly sparks up nostalgia.

It ups the brutality but forgoes the emotional impact that made previous films so deeply effective. This film attempts to provide commentary on toxic fandom, yet does very little to build that foundation among its characters to support that belief. There’s little to no cinematic scope that made its predecessors feel more like an expansive and actual world, with most scenes being tightly shot, bland, and a touch too dark. Scream (2022) really gave me the ick with the entire conceit of the Billy Ghost suddenly being a twisted positive guide for Sam, a daughter whom he never met, is incredibly cringe. Let’s not rewrite the history of him being a total psychopath, please. 

4. Scream 3

Scream 3 was meant to be the concluding chapter of the franchise, and it did indeed end that way with Sidney reconciling with her mom’s past and finding peace. While Scream 4 is a great film, it wouldn’t have been super sad for Ghostface to put his knife away here for good. Scream 3 takes us to Hollywood as a new Ghostface killer starts to cut down people Sid knows IRL as well as the cast of the next Stab movie. The meta commentary and the loose idea of the movie within a movie still feel relatively fresh in this installment.

The film has quite a few unforgettable set pieces, like Roman’s expansive house and the entire recreated world of Woodsboro. Scream 3’s pointed and chillingly accurate commentary about the abusive and exploitative nature of Hollywood and how trauma can manifest in a person is still socially relevant. Where the film does fall short is that it is more of the “Gale, Dewey, and Scooby-Doo Acting Gang” show versus about Sidney’s final chapter, and these two storylines are very different tonally. Sure, this film has some of the best secondary and tertiary characters in the franchise, but still. A lot of glaring plot holes point back to an ever-changing script, even though the final scenes truly deliver the tension, drama, and brutality that we’d expect from this franchise. 

3. Scream IV

Scream IV brought the franchise back to life briefly in 2011, introducing a new generation of Woodsboro High Students facing Ghostface killings. It has some of the most interesting commentary on society that was truly ahead of its time and holds up very well through a modern lens. The dangerous thirst for quick Internet fame that can lead to callous actions is extremely present in Jill and Charlie’s motive. Visually, it is not the most appealing film, but it introduces promising new characters like Kirby Reed.

And, in terms of Sidney’s arc, this film doesn’t offer her much room for growth nor to truly be the bada-- that we know she is. Sidney feels like she’s simply a piece on a chessboard that Ghostface is moving around, and putting that character in the driver’s seat takes away from her story.

2. Scream 2

These days, you gotta have a sequel! Billy and Stu didn’t make it to the next round, thankfully, but Scream 2 is a sublime follow up to the first film. It takes us to Windsor College and gives us a sweeping viewpoint of Ohio, where Sidney and Randy are in college. The actually surprising twist of Billy’s mother as the killer hiding in plain sight, incredible set pieces, and one of the most intense scenes in the franchise where Sidney and Halle are climbing out of the cop car all make this film worthy of a spot near the top.

Ghostface is more chilling than ever, both over the phone and in person, and the kill count amps up for some bloody fun. The shock of losing Randy and that wild theater opening scene are two cherries on top of this Sunday. Some glaring plot holes, specifically with some incredibly convenient things that work in the killers’ favor, keep this film from outdoing the original. 

1. Scream 

While the overall Scream franchise has better quality than other long-running horror ones, we all know that nothing f---s with the original. Set in a reality where people are hyper-aware of how these types of terrifying situations work, Scream hits all the big points. Visually, it sticks with those sweeping wide shots that bring true depth and character to Woodsboro, making it feel less like a curation of sets and more like an actual town. The setpieces are all expansive and feel truly lived in. The characters are great, with Sidney balancing palpable fear and dogged determination with ease.

In fact, the casting is pitch perfect all around with characters who feel less like caricatures and more like fully realized people, even when they lean into certain archetypes. While it doesn’t go super big on the kill count, they are all memorable with different types of unique touches. The opening scene is one of the best to ever exist in horror, and continues to influence other films to this day. Scream’s dialogue and deft balance of humor and edge totally knock it out of the park. The film’s soundtrack turned “Red Right Hand” into a cornerstone of the sound of horror, and Roger L. Jackson’s voice helped to birth a villainous icon with a signature look who is a merchandising goldmine, from this adorably sinister Funko! Pop to too many T-Shirts to possibly own.