Scary Movie (film series)

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Scary Movie
Scary Movie film series logo.svg
Official film series logo
Starring Anna Faris (1–4, 6)
Regina Hall (1–4, 6)
Marlon Wayans (1–2, 6)
Shawn Wayans (1–2, 6)
Dave Sheridan (1)
Cheri Oteri (1)
Lochlyn Munro (1)
Shannon Elizabeth (1)
David Cross (2)
Tim Curry (2)
Christopher Masterson (2)
Kathleen Robertson (2)
Tori Spelling (2)
Production
companies
  • Wayans Bros. Entertainment (1–2)
  • Gold-Miller Productions (1–2)
  • Brad Grey Pictures (1–5)
  • Miramax Films (4)
  • DZE (5)
Distributed by Dimension Films (1–5)
Running time
424 minutes (5 films)
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$172 million (5 films)
Box office$897.2 million (5 films)

Scary Movie is a series of American parody films, mainly focusing on spoofing horror films. The franchise has a combined gross of almost $900 million at the worldwide box office and has received mixed reviews from critics. A sixth film is in development.

Contents

Films

FilmU.S. release dateDirector(s)Screenwriter(s)Story byProducer(s)Status
Scary Movie July 7, 2000 Keenen Ivory Wayans Shawn Wayans, Marlon Wayans, Buddy Johnson, Phil Beauman, & Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer Eric L. Gold, Lee R. Mayes, Bo ZengaReleased
Scary Movie 2 July 4, 2001Shawn Wayans, Marlon Wayans, Alyson Fouse, Greg Grabianski, Dave Polsky, Michael Anthony Snowden, & Craig Wayans Eric L. Gold
Scary Movie 3 October 24, 2003 David Zucker Craig Mazin & Pat Proft Robert K. Weiss
Scary Movie 4 April 14, 2006Craig Mazin & Jim Abrahams & Pat ProftCraig MazinRobert K. Weiss and Craig Mazin
Scary Movie 5 April 12, 2013 Malcolm D. Lee David Zucker & Pat ProftDavid Zucker and Phil Dornfeld
Scary Movie 6 June 12, 2026 Michael Tiddes [1] Marlon Wayans & Shawn Wayans & Keenen Ivory Wayans & Rick Alvarez Neal H. Moritz, Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Keenen Ivory Wayans and Rick AlvarezPre-production

Scary Movie (2000)

Scary Movie is the first film of the franchise and directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans. [2] It is the highest-grossing film of the franchise, with $278,019,771 worldwide. [3]

The film's plot mainly spoofs Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997), [4] and it follows a group of clueless teenagers who are stalked by an incompetent serial killer one year after disposing of the body of a man they accidentally hit with their car.

Scary Movie 2 (2001)

Scary Movie 2 is the second film of the franchise and was also directed by Wayans. It grossed $141,220,678 worldwide and is the second lowest-grossing film of the franchise. [5] This is the last film to receive an R-rating and also marked the end of the Wayans siblings' involvement with the franchise, until the development of the sixth film. [6]

The film is a parody of The Haunting (1999), [4] with the plot following a perverted college professor who plans to study ghosts inside a haunted mansion and uses the teens as bait.

Scary Movie 3 (2003)

Scary Movie 3 is the third film of the franchise and was directed by David Zucker. With $220,673,217 earned worldwide, it is the second highest-grossing film in the franchise. [7] This was the first Scary Movie film to receive a PG-13 rating, as well as the first film to have no involvement from the Wayans family. [6]

Michael Jackson planned to sue the filmmakers for Edward Moss parodying him in such a way that made him seem like a child molester and having a fake nose.

The plot of the film is a spoof of Signs and The Ring (both 2002). It revolves around strange crop circles found near an old farm and the circulation of an unusual videotape and Cindy helping the President to prevent an extreterrestrial invasion.

Scary Movie 4 (2006)

Scary Movie 4 is the fourth film of the franchise and was also directed by Zucker. With $178,710,620 at the worldwide box office, it ranks as the franchise's third highest-grossing film. [8] It is the final film in the franchise to feature any of the original cast members.

The main target of spoof was War of the Worlds (2005). [4] The film follows Cindy trying to solve the murder of a young boy that's haunting her house.

Scary Movie 5 (2013)

Scary Movie 5 is the fifth film of the franchise and was directed by Malcolm D. Lee. It is the only film in the franchise to not be starred by Anna Faris and Regina Hall. [9] It grossed $78,613,981 worldwide and became the lowest-grossing film of the franchise. [10]

The film Mama (2013) is primarily parodied, and follows a couple that discovers, via the recordings of video cameras, that they and their three newly adopted children are being haunted by a mysterious demon.

Scary Movie 6 (2026)

In April 2024, it was announced that a new film was in development, with producer Neal H. Moritz attached to the project. Production will be financed entirely by Miramax, while Paramount Pictures will distribute the movie. In October 2024, it was confirmed that the Wayans brothers would reunite for the first time in 18 years to develop the new film. Principal photography began in October 2024 [11] [12] [13] . It will be the first film in the series not to be produced by Dimension Films, due to the company being shut down on July 16, 2018 following The Weinstein Company's liquidation, [14] [15] and the second film in the series to be produced by Miramax. [16] The film is scheduled to release on June 12, 2026. [17] In August 2025, Regina Hall and Anna Faris were confirmed to reprise their roles as Brenda Meeks and Cindy Campbell. [18]

Recurring cast and characters

List indicators

This section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in two or more films in the series.

ActorFilms
Scary Movie Scary Movie 2 Scary Movie 3 Scary Movie 4 Scary Movie 5 Scary Movie 6
200020012003200620132026
Anna Faris Cindy Campbell Cindy Campbell
Regina Hall Brenda MeeksBrenda Meeks
Marlon Wayans Shorty MeeksShorty Meeks
Shawn Wayans Ray WilkinsRay Wilkins
Carmen Electra Drew DeckerHolly
Chris Elliott HansonEzekiel
Charlie Sheen Tom LoganTom Logan U Charlie
Simon Rex George LoganDan Sanders
Anthony Anderson Mahalik
Kevin Hart CJ
Leslie Nielsen President Harris
Edward Moss Michael Jackson
Molly Shannon MarilynHeather Darcy

Additional crew and production details

FilmCrew/Detail
CinematographerEditor(s)ComposerProduction companiesDistributing companiesRunning time
Scary Movie Francis Kenny Mark Helfrich David Kitay Wayans Bros. Entertainment,
Gold/Miller Productions,
Brad Grey Pictures
Miramax Films 88 minutes
Scary Movie 2 Steven Berstein Tom Nordberg, Richard Pearson & Peter Teschner Dimension Films 83 minutes
Scary Movie 3 Mark Irwin Jon Poll James L. Venable Brad Grey Pictures84 minutes
Scary Movie 4 Thomas E. Ackerman Craig Herring & Tom LewisDimension Films,
Miramax Films,
Brad Grey Pictures
The Weinstein Company 83 minutes
Scary Movie 5 Steven Douglas SmithSam SeigBrad Grey Pictures,
DZE
Dimension Films86 minutes
Scary Movie 6TBATBATBAMiramaxParamount PicturesTBA

Production

Parodies

Scary Movie's main parodies are of Scream (1996) and I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997). The rest of its elements are of The Exorcist (1973), The Shining (1980), Kazaam (1996), Election (1999), Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003), The Matrix , The Blair Witch Project , and The Sixth Sense (all three 1999). [4]

Scary Movie 2's primary target is The Haunting (1999). The rest of the film contains traces parodies of House on Haunted Hill (1959) and its 1999 remake, The Legend of Hell House , The Exorcist (both 1973), The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), The Amityville Horror (1979), The Changeling (1980), Poltergeist (1982), Bloodbath at the House of Death (1984), Titanic (1997), I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998), Stigmata (1999), What Lies Beneath , Hollow Man , Charlie's Angels , Dude, Where's My Car? (all four 2000), and Hannibal (2001). [4]

Scary Movie 3's general parodies are of Signs and The Ring (both 2002). It also features elements of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), Airplane! (1980), The Others (2001), Minority Report , 8 Mile (both 2002), and The Matrix Reloaded (2003). [4]

Scary Movie 4's parodies are of The Village , The Grudge (both 2004), the Saw franchise (2004–present), and War of the Worlds (2005). It also parodies Million Dollar Baby (2004) and Brokeback Mountain (2005). [4]

Scary Movie 5's central areas of satire are the Paranormal Activity films (2007–2021), Black Swan (2010), Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), and Mama (2013). Other notable parodies are those of the Madea films (2005–present), Inception (2010), Fifty Shades of Grey , The Cabin in the Woods (both 2011), Sinister (2012), and Evil Dead (2013). [4]

Reception

Box office

FilmRelease DateGrossesBudget
DomesticInternationalWorldwide
Scary Movie [3] July 7, 2000$157,019,771$121,000,000$278,019,771$19 million
Scary Movie 2 [5] July 4, 2001$71,308,997$69,911,681$141,220,678$45 million
Scary Movie 3 [7] October 24, 2003$110,003,217$110,670,000$220,673,217$48 million
Scary Movie 4 [8] April 14, 2006$90,710,620$88,000,000$178,710,620$40 million
Scary Movie 5 [10] April 12, 2013$32,015,787$46,598,194$78,613,981$20 million
Total$461,058,392$436,179,875$897,238,267$172 million

Critical response

Film Rotten Tomatoes Metacritic CinemaScore [19]
Scary Movie 51% (117 reviews) [20] 48 (32 critic reviews) [21] B−
Scary Movie 2 13% (110 reviews) [22] 29 (25 critic reviews) [23] B
Scary Movie 3 35% (127 reviews) [24] 49 (27 critic reviews) [25]
Scary Movie 4 34% (125 reviews) [26] 40 (23 critic reviews) [27] C+
Scary Movie 5 4% (50 reviews) [28] 11 (16 critic reviews) [29] C−

Music

Soundtracks

References

  1. Wayans, Marlon (July 29, 2025). "From Grief to Scary Movie 6 with Marlon Wayans". Baby, This Is Keke Palmer (Interview). Interviewed by Palmer, Keke. YouTube. Event occurs at 49:20. Retrieved August 5, 2025.
  2. Nair, Soumya (December 28, 2023). "Watch Every Scary Movie in Order: The Perfect Sequence Guide". movikv.com. Movikv. Retrieved April 2, 2025.
  3. 1 2 "Scary Movie". Box Office Mojo . Amazon . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Raymond, Adam K. (April 15, 2013). "Every Movie 'Spoofed' in the Scary Movie Franchise". Vulture . Retrieved April 1, 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Scary Movie 2". Box Office Mojo . Amazon . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  6. 1 2 "Limehouse, Jonathan (October 29, 2024). "'We're Back!!!' Wayans brothers reunite to write script for upcoming 'Scary Movie 6'". USA Today . Retrieved April 2, 2025.
  7. 1 2 "Scary Movie 3". Box Office Mojo . Amazon . Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  8. 1 2 "Scary Movie 4 (2006) - Financial Information". The Numbers . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  9. "Anderson, Ethan (May 7, 2012). "'Scary Movie 5' Plot Details Revealed and Anna Faris Won't Be Back". FirstShowing.net. Retrieved April 3, 2025.
  10. 1 2 "Scary Movie V (2013) - Financial Information". The Numbers . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  11. D'Alessandro, Anthony (April 11, 2024). "New Scary Movie In The Works Under Jonathan Glickman's Miramax & Neal H. Moritz – CinemaCon". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  12. Couch, Aaron (April 11, 2024). "New Scary Movie in the Works From Paramount". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  13. BigBoyTV (December 14, 2024). Marlon Wayans Speaks on Jay Z, Drake Lawsuit, Diddy, New Scary Movie, Health | NEW BIG Interview . Retrieved December 14, 2024 via YouTube.
  14. Marotta, Jenna (July 16, 2018). "The Weinstein Company Is No More: Buyer Lantern Capital Partners Rebrands as Lantern Entertainment". IndieWire. Archived from the original on July 18, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  15. Kilday, Gregg (July 16, 2018). "Weinstein Co. Saga Comes to an End as $289 Million Sale to Lantern Closes". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on July 18, 2018. Retrieved July 28, 2018.
  16. D'Alessandro, Anthony (October 29, 2024). "The Wayans Brothers Reunite For New 'Scary Movie' With Miramax & Paramount". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  17. "D'Alessandro, Anthony (January 24, 2025). "'Scary Movie' Reboot Gets Summer 2026 Theatrical Release". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved March 4, 2025.
  18. Briscuso, Lex (August 15, 2025). "Scary Movie 6: Marlon Wayans Confirms Anna Faris and Regina Hall Will Return". IGN . Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  19. "Home - Cinemascore". cinemascore.com. Retrieved March 18, 2025.
  20. "Scary Movie". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  21. "Scary Movie Reviews". Metacritic. CBS . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  22. "Scary Movie 2". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  23. "Scary Movie 2 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  24. "Scary Movie 3". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  25. "Scary Movie 3 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  26. "Scary Movie 4". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  27. "Scary Movie 4 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  28. "Scary Movie V". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster . Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  29. "Scary Movie 5 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS . Retrieved February 11, 2025.