Scream (2022)

Scream is a 1996 American slasher film directed by Wes Craven and written by Kevin Williamson. It stars David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Matthew Lillard, Rose McGowan, Skeet Ulrich, and Drew Barrymore. Set in the fictional town of Woodsboro, California, Scream's plot follows high school student Sidney Prescott (Campbell) and her friends, who, on the anniversary of her mother's murder, become the targets of a costumed serial killer known as Ghostface. Williamson, who was struggling to get his projects off the ground, was inspired by reports of a series of murders by the Gainesville Ripper as he wrote a screenplay that satirized the clichés of the slasher genre popularized in films such as Halloween (1978), Friday the 13th (1980), and A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). Developed under the title Scary Movie, Williamson's script became the subject of an intense bidding war from multiple studios before Miramax Films purchased the rights. Craven, despite turning down the opportunity multiple times, agreed to direct the film after he had read the script as he was determined to re-establish himself after several career setbacks. The involvement of Barrymore and Cox helped secure more support from the studio. Principal photography took place from April to June 1996 in California on a budget of $15 million. Craven trimmed down the violence in the film after being involved in a tense conflict with the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) over the desired R-rating. Released on December 20, Scream was not expected to perform well due to concerns over releasing a slasher film in a time normally reserved for holiday entertainment. However, it went on to gross approximately $173 million worldwide through the strength of word of mouth, becoming a surprise success and one of the highest-grossing films of the year. Contemporary reviews were positive, with praise going to the performances of its cast and its unique meta humor, but criticism was directed at its excessive violence and lack of suspense in favor of that humor. Scream revitalized both Craven's and Barrymore's careers and helped bolster the careers of its young cast. In the years since its release, Scream's reception has continued to be positive. It has been credited with rekindling interest in the horror genre during the 1990s following a decline in the genre's popularity and has been credited for shifting the genre towards younger audiences and casting established actors. The film's opening sequence, in which Barrymore's character is killed by Ghostface, is considered one of the most shocking and subversive in cinematic history. The success of the film launched a multimedia franchise, which comprises the sequels Scream 2 (1997), Scream 3 (2000), Scream 4 (2011), Scream (2022), Scream VI (2023), and Scream 7 (2026), as well as an anthology television series.