All 6 Scream Movies, Ranked by Box Office

Slasher movies have been a popular subsection of horror ever since the success of Black Christmas and Halloween in the 1970s. Although Wes Craven successfully reinvented the subgenre thanks to the creation of Freddy Krueger and A Nightmare on Elm Street, slashers began to feel generic by the early 1990s. Some feared the familiar format had lost favor with audiences until Craven successfully reignited the passion for slashers with 1996's Scream, a self-aware series that acknowledged recurring tropes within horror films. The film spawned a franchise, proving to have longevity at the box office, even when other horror franchises like The Exorcist and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre have hit downward spirals.

The Scream series has routinely earned enthusiastic responses based on its cheeky inversion of formula, self-aware humor, and inventive kills. However, recent behind-the-scenes drama has led to significant controversy, with the series losing some of its luster. Still, the upcoming seventh entry will feature the return of Neve Campbell to the Scream series after a much-publicized pay dispute led her to drop out of the previous installment. Beyond the real-life drama, the Scream series remains one of the few horror sagas that continues to get more inventive with each installment, and the box office proves it. Although it has suffered some peaks and valleys, Scream remains a reliable commercial performer, with most of its entries ranking among the most successful slashers since the subgenre's inception.

6 'Scream 4' (2011)

Worldwide gross: $97,231,420

Released before the term "legacy sequel" became popular with films like Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Creed, Scream 4 attempted to unite the cast of the original film with a younger generation of stars. While Scream 4's cheeky approach to nostalgia and a strong performance from Campbell made it one of the more creatively engaging installments in the series, it sadly became the lowest-grossing. With a worldwide global box office total of over $97 million, Scream 4 is the only film in the series to date not to cross the $100 million threshold. It also represented Craven's last contribution to the series before his tragic passing in 2015.

While the first three films were released in short succession, Scream 4 may have been released too long after its predecessors. Those who had grown up with the original film may not have responded to the overt nostalgic ties, and younger viewers apparently didn't have an interest in the new characters played by Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, and Rory Culkin. The relative disappointment of Scream 4 was enough to temporarily grind the series to a halt before it received a "soft reboot" over a decade later.

Scream 4

Ten years have passed, and Sidney Prescott, who has put herself back together thanks in part to her writing, is visited by the Ghostface Killer.

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5 'Scream' (2022)

Worldwide gross: $137,743,924

While Scream 4 failed to connect with younger audiences unfamiliar with the original property, 2022's Scream served as the perfect introduction to the saga for a new generation. By introducing a young set of fresh faces, including Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, and Jack Quaid, the fifth entry didn't require extensive knowledge of the previous installments. However, the return of Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, and a ghostly Skeet Ulrich as Billy Loomis ensured that original fans were not left behind. Satisfying multiple generations of viewers proved to be the secret to Scream's success, allowing it to make waves at the box office only shortly after audiences returned to theaters in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Although it ranks as the second lowest-grossing film in the series, Scream was successful enough to generate interest in continuing the rebooted franchises in future installments. With a global box office total of over $137 million, Scream was a hit in theaters and wracked up only more views thanks to its subsequent release on Paramount's streaming platform. Although the notion of a new Scream film without Craven behind the camera seemed impossible, directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett proved adept at blending the noir thrills, caustic sense of humor, cheeky pop culture references, and graphic death sequences that were essential to a great Scream movie.

Scream (2022)

Twenty-five years after a streak of brutal murders shocked the quiet town of Woodsboro, Calif., a new killer dons the Ghostface mask and begins targeting a group of teenagers to resurrect secrets from the town's deadly past.

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4 'Scream 3' (2000)

Worldwide gross: $161,834,276

Despite being released only shortly after the success of its two direct predecessors, Scream 3was the lowest-grossing entry in the franchise at the time of its release. While its worldwide gross of over $160 million was impressive, especially for a horror movie, it did suggest that audiences had grown somewhat tired of the formula. The film had been extensively rewritten in order to keep real-world tragedies in mind, resulting in a slightly disjointed conclusion that lacked the spontaneity of the first two films.

Although it allowed the franchise to reach a temporary conclusion on a relatively respectable note, Scream 3 seemed positioned to be the end of an era. The film's ending sees Sidney finally making peace with her past and moving on to the next stage of her life. It's perhaps because of this conclusive nature that it took the franchise so long to deliver another installment. Scream 3 came about when trilogies were the norm and gave a satisfying, if rushed, conclusion to its three main characters. In fact, if no other movies had come out after, it would still stand as a worthy ending to Sidney's story.

Scream 3

While Sidney and her friends visit the Hollywood set of Stab 3, the third film based on the Woodsboro murders, another Ghostface killer rises to terrorize them.

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3 'Scream VI' (2023)

Worldwide gross: $168,961,389

While its predecessor had been generally well-received, Scream VI took advantage of the rising support for its two stars. Barrera had certainly proven herself capable of picking up the franchise torch after Campbell's exit from the series, and Ortega's popularity had only skyrocketed thanks to the overwhelming success of Netflix's Wednesday. With a global box office gross of over $168 million, Scream VI confirmed the audience had not diminished in the aftermath of the first film.

Campbell's exit had raised some red flags for the film's future, but Scream VI's overperformance suggested that the franchise itself was bigger than any singular character. Considering how much stronger the film performed in comparison to its predecessor, Scream VI may have been aided at the box office based on strong word-of-mouth. The film was ranked among 2023's best sequels, a notable factor considering sequels like Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Fast X, and The Marvels underperformed the same year.

Scream 6

In the next installment, the survivors of the Ghostface killings leave Woodsboro behind and start a fresh chapter in New York City.

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2 'Scream 2' (1997)

Worldwide gross: $172,363,301

Rushing to create a sequel to capitalize on the success of a surprise hit can be a dangerous endeavor, as it's easy to lose sight of what made a franchise popular in the first place. However, Scream 2 was the rare sequel that lived up to its potential, earning just as strong reviews as its predecessor. Its relatively short production window ensured that the audience did not forget how the first film ended, allowing the story to pick up right where it left off. With a global box office of over $172 million, Scream 2 nearly managed to be the biggest film in the series.

With the central mystery engaging the audience again, Scream 2 capitalized on the pop culture influence of the first film. Scream's events are extensively covered by the news media in Scream 2, reflecting the real headlines that circulated after the first film's release. It didn't hurt that the film acknowledged the inherently disappointing nature of sequels; a critical sequence in the film references films like The Empire Strikes Back and Aliens that managed to surpass their predecessors.

Scream 2

Two years after the first series of murders, as Sidney acclimates to college life, someone donning the Ghostface costume begins a new string of killings.

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1 'Scream' (1996)

Worldwide gross: $173,046,663

The saga has successfully maintained its freshness, but it has never topped its initial entry. Instantly recognized as a future classic within the genre, Scream reached a global box office total of over $173 million. Aside from reigniting Craven's career after the financial underperformance of Wes Craven's New Nightmare, the film inspired a new wave of teen-centric horror films. The incorporation of a mystery element helped attract a broader audience that otherwise wouldn't have been interested in a slasher franchise. Scream made stars out of Campbell and Arquette and capitalized on Cox's popularity during the peak of Friends' original run.

Multiple factors contributed to the film's success, including the media uproar over a series of real murders. However, the fact remains the original Scream is simply the best of the entire series. A bold reimagining of the genre that referenced classics like Friday the 13th and Psycho, Scream proved that audiences would connect with characters that had the same popular culture knowledge as they did. While the notion of Campbell returning to reprise her role in an upcoming Scream sequel is exciting, it's hard to imagine another entry in the series having the same cultural impact as the 1996 original.

Scream

A year after the murder of her mother, a teenage girl is terrorized by a masked killer who targets her and her friends by using scary movies as part of a deadly game.

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