‘Do You Like Scary Movies?’ Here’s Where to Watch All the ‘Scream’ Movies Online
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What started with a terrifying phone call has now turned into an entire franchise of fear as the Scream movie series welcomes its latest incarnation into theaters.
Scream (also referred to as Scream 5) hits theaters this weekend, with stars Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette all reprising their roles from the first four Scream movies.
Buy: ‘Scream’ 2022 Tickets at Fandango
The 2022 Scream follows the residents of Woodsboro as they face off against a new stranger sporting the iconic Ghostface mask. Is he a copycat killer or is he connected to secrets from the town’s deadly past?
Joining the original stars are new cast additions Jenna Ortega, Dylan Minnette, Melissa Barrera, Mason Gooding and Jack Quaid.
When Does the New Scream 5 Premiere?
Scream 5 hits theaters on Friday, January 14 (see showtimes and get tickets here). The 2022 Scream movie is premiering exclusively in theaters and won’t be available for streaming just yet. If you want to watch the new Scream online, you’ll have to wait until after its theatrical run, as which time Paramount Pictures will announce a home for streaming Scream 2022 online.
While you can’t stream Scream 5 just yet, there is some good news: all of the other films in the Scream franchise are available to stream right now. Here’s where to find all of the Scream films online and how to stream them for free.
How to Watch Scream Online
The Scream franchise debuted in 1996, with a screenplay by Kevin Williamson (then best-known for creating Dawson’s Creek) and director Wes Craven, a lifelong horror fan who created the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. The film was a huge commercial and critical success, bringing in almost $200 million at the box office worldwide, while helping to revive the “slasher film” genre (just see all the other horror films that were made after the success of Scream). The opening scene with Drew Barrymore remains one of the most memorable — and most-spoofed — scenes today.
If you want to watch the original Scream online, you can find it on Peacock. A Peacock subscription starts at just $4.99 a month and will let you watch the 1996 Scream online on your laptop, TV, tablet or phone. You can stream Scream as many times as you want with your Peacock login.
Buy: Peacock Subscription at $4.99
You can also rent the original Scream online for $2.99 on Amazon. You can also download the Scream movie online by purchasing it for $7.99 on Amazon.
How to Watch Scream 2 Online
After the success of Scream, the filmmakers immediately went into production on a sequel. Scream 2 was released in 1997 and follows Campbell’s Sidney Prescott as she tries to uncover the person — or people — behind a series of copycat crimes.
Just like the original Scream, you can watch Scream 2 online at PeacockTV.com. While Peacock does offer a free streaming tier, you’ll need to sign-up for a Peacock subscription in order to stream Scream 2 online.
Buy: Peacock Subscription at $4.99
You can also watch Scream 2 on Amazon by renting it for $2.99 or purchasing a digital download of the film for $9.99 here.
How to Watch Scream 3 Online
The Scream franchise continued with Scream 3, which hit theaters in 2000. Want to watch Scream 3 online? The film is available to stream online at Starz.com. Starz is currently offering a 7-day free trial which you can grab here to watch Scream 3 online free.
Use the trial to watch the 2000 Scream movie free and get free streaming to all of Starz’s movies, TV shows and specials. A monthly membership starts at just $8.99 after your free week is up.
Buy: Starz Subscription at $8.99
You can also stream some Scream movies on Hulu. Hulu currently has Scream 3 available to stream online. Sign-up for Hulu’s free trial here and use it to watch Scream 3 online free. Hulu currently offers a 30-day free trial, which you can use to watch the Scream movies free in addition to all of Hulu’s on-demand content. A Hulu subscription is just $6.99 a month after that.
Buy: Hulu Subscription at $6.99
Prefer to rent or own the film? You can also watch Scream 3 online on Amazon.
How to Watch Scream 4 Online
After a decade-long hiatus, Scream 4 was green-lit in 2010 with Williamson and Craven once again helming the project. The fourth installment in the Scream franchise premiered in April 2011 with Campbell’s Prescott encountering Ghostface once again, this time while on a book tour talking about her previous near-death experiences.
If you want to watch Scream 4 online, you have a couple of options: Amazon has Scream 4 available for rental ($3.99) or purchase ($4.99) here.
Want to watch Scream 4 online free? Get a 7-day free trial to Showtime with this Amazon Prime Video deal and use it to stream Scream 4 free on your computer, TV, tablet or phone. Your Showtime subscription renews at $10.99 a month after your free trial is over.
You can also watch Scream 4 online free on Hulu. Grab the Hulu 30-day free trial and use it to stream Scream 4 for free. Cancel your Hulu subscription before your free streaming month ends, or stay on for just $6.99 a month.
Buy: Hulu Subscription at $6.99
Note: not all of the Scream movies are on Hulu – the streaming service currently only has Scream 3 and Scream 4 available to stream online.
Are the Scream Movies on Amazon?
Amazon is your best bet to find the Scream movies online. You can rent or download the Scream movies via Amazon Prime Video, or purchase the trilogy collection (Scream 1-3) on Blu-ray/DVD. Scream 4 is available for purchase on Blu-ray/DVD separately here.
Amazon
Buy: Scream 3-Movie Collection at $17.99
Amazon is also where you can stream and download episodes of Scream: The TV Series, which was a show that was inspired by the movie franchise, and ran on MTV and VH1 for three seasons between 2015 and 2019.
Buy: Scream: The TV Series at $2.99
The Scream cast takes us behind the scenes on the new, self-aware slasher
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What’s your favorite scary movie? Chances are that Scream – Wes Craven’s genre-bending, witty, self-aware slasher – is high on your list. And while the franchise has been absent from the big screen since 2011’s Scream 4, the fifth installment, simply titled Scream, brings back Ghostface with a brutal, bloody bang.
While legacy characters Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), Dewey Riley (David Arquette), and Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) return, there are a whole host of new characters in the spotlight. Center stage is Sam Carpenter (In the Heights star Melissa Barrera) who returns to the Ghostface-plagued town of Woodsboro when her younger sister Tara (You’s Jenna Ortega) is viciously attacked by the masked killer – and Sam’s handling this nightmare “very stupidly,” according to Barrera.
“It’s the first rule of horror movies,” she tells GamesRadar+ with a laugh over Zoom. “That’s what’s brilliant about Scream, is that all the characters are very aware about the rules of horror movies, and they’re talking like we as an audience talk, like ‘Oh, why is she doing that? Why is she going to look there, she’s going to die’ and yet they still do those things.
“She’s going into la boca del lobo, as we say in Spanish, the mouth of the wolf. She’s going straight in asking for it, basically. But she’s a big sister and she would do anything for family, and that’s something that I can relate to, because I’m a big sister too. I have three younger sisters. So I can understand the dumb move, and honestly, we wouldn’t have a movie if it weren’t for that.”
Joining Sam on her trip back to Woodsboro is her boyfriend Richie Kirsch, played by The Boys’ Jack Quaid, and he’s also a little out of his depth. “I do love playing audience surrogate characters, because I just get to essentially befriend the audience, in a way, and be one of them going through what it would be like if one of them was going through this experience,” says the actor of his character. “Honestly, I just had a blast. It was awesome.”
“It’s happening again”
(Image credit: Paramount Pictures)
Ghostface’s modus operandi in Scream, co-directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, is the same as ever: Tara gets a creepy phone call from that distinctive, terrifying voice, and is then tormented by the knife-wielding killer before the bloodshed begins.
“It was really amazing, because they actually got [Roger L.] Jackson on the phone, so I was able to speak with the real Ghostface, and that was my first day on set,” Ortega says of filming Tara’s ordeal. “So it was my first experience of the Scream franchise, and suddenly, everything felt very real, and I felt immense pressure to do the best I possibly could, especially seeing all of the incredible Ghostface phone calls I’ve seen before me.
“But it also was exciting to put myself in my character’s shoes and see what my reaction would be as her. Also, I love to do stunts, and I love it when things get bloody and messy, the way horror is supposed to. So for me, it was a dream scene.”
Sam doesn’t have to face Ghostface alone, though. Joining her in the struggle are Scream legends Sidney, Gale, and Dewey, with Campbell, Cox, and Arquette back in the roles.
“Watching them work, watching them so seamlessly slip right back into those characters that they played for 25 years was fascinating and thrilling to watch,” says Barrera. “But also, all the knowledge that they bring with them of the first four movies, the stories that they told us of anecdotes that they’ve gone through, from when they first met in the first movie, how it was, how they didn’t expect it to become such a huge hit. And just seeing their professionalism, it really was a life lesson.”
(Image credit: Paramount Pictures)
“Neve at one point did say one concrete piece of advice, which was just have fun,” adds Quaid. “Like, ‘This is such a fun movie, and I want you guys to relish this experience as much as you can.’ And that’s what we needed to hear, because we shot this thing in the middle of a pandemic. We were all so lucky to be there working on something we cared about, working on something we thought was awesome.”
The trio aren’t the only ones who are back. Also returning is Marley Shelton as Judy Hicks, last seen as the deputy with a big crush on Dewey in Scream 4.
“Judy has been promoted,” Shelton says. “She’s gone from Deputy Judy Hicks to Sheriff Judy Hicks. And she has a 16 year old son. She’s a single mom, we’re never sure exactly who the father is, and what that story is. A lot has happened to Judy, since [Scream] 4.”
Judy’s son, named Wes Hicks, is played by Thirteen Reasons Why’s Dylan Minnette. “I would describe Wes as a good son, he’s a good boy,” says the actor. “He really respects his mother, and he really takes her very seriously. He doesn’t like to let her know that, but it definitely reflects with his friends, because he’s trying to protect his friends. Judy is very protective of him. Wes takes on a lot of characteristics of his mom. He’s a deeply caring person, he cares about the people around him. Wes is the nice guy of this movie.”
Knowing the rules
(Image credit: Paramount Pictures)
This wouldn’t be Scream without a meta, self-referential approach to the genre. Already in the series, we’ve been inctoduced to the in-universe Stab franchise, based on the Woodsboro murders (AKA the events of the Scream movies). Then there’s the franchise’s heavy focus on the rules of horror, sequels, threequels, and so on.
In the original Scream, Jamie Kennedy’s Randy Meeks knew the horror movie rules backwards – though it couldn’t save him in the sequel. This time around, Jasmin Savoy Brown’s Mindy Meeks-Martin is picking up that baton.
“Scream is very smart, very self-aware, good at doing some callbacks but also remaining new and fresh,” says Brown. “And I am very much a part of that.”
“You are that in spades, mind you,” adds Mason Gooding, who plays Mindy’s twin brother Chad Meeks-Martin. “To echo Randy’s sentiment, you embody the rules of surviving a horror movie.”
Whether that encyclopedic horror knowledge will save the twins remains to be seen, as getting through these movies alive is no easy task. There’s a killer on the loose, and just as with the previous installments, we don’t know who’s lurking under the Ghostface mask. On more than one occasion, it’s been two killers wreaking havoc. The only clue we have is the tagline to the new movie: it’s always someone you know. And to keep the secrecy at a maximum, even members of the new movie’s cast have no idea of the killer’s true identity.
“It was a pretty unusual experience, I don’t know if we will ever have that experience again, doing a project where nobody really knows how it’s going to end, and where there’s different versions of the script,” says Mikey Madison, who plays Amber Freeman, a close friend of Tara’s. “[It’s a] pretty strange, interesting thing, I think it really emphasizes that whodunnit situation in real life. So I think that really translated to the film as well.”
Naturally, not knowing the killer’s identity meant things got meta for the cast. “It made it feel like the movie was real life, because we’d go get dinner and we’d be like, ‘Who do you think it is? Who do you think it is?’” Brown says. “And a couple people knew before other people knew, and it made the scenes feel much more alive.”
Fresh blood
(Image credit: Paramount Pictures)
Scream has all the hallmarks of, well, a Scream movie then, but don’t expect it to be exactly the same as what’s come before.
“It honors the original story, because we have the legacy cast,” says Sonia Ammar, who plays Liv McKenzie. “But it also adds a fresh, new take to it and meshes the legacy with that new cast and fresh blood, and makes it exciting both for people who’ve grown up loving the franchise and are big fans of it, and also people who’ve never seen it or are new to the Scream world, [who] I think are going to really enjoy it and fall in love with the story and all the characters – or hate them!”
Shelton agrees. “It’s certainly honoring the legacy, and in step with the legacy, but with the infusion of a new cast and our directors adding their own touches. It definitely has a fresh take on it, as well.”
Scream walks that tightrope between old and new, similar to how other famous franchises have done recently. Indeed, the horror landscape today looks crowded with reboots and sequels – last year alone brought Halloween Kills, a new Candyman, and a Chucky TV show – but there’s a very good reason this film stands apart from the rest.
“Well, none of them are Scream,” says Brown. “Scream was the first and Scream was the best, and that holds up today.”
The film self-consciously positions itself as a “requel” (that’s reboot/sequel), which, as Gooding explains, just makes sense for the franchise. “It’s funny, we draw [on] a lot of perception about other requel or reboot franchises, but I feel like it’s the nature of Scream, and the satirical elements present in it, that it’s natural and organic within our movie to point out different tropes.”
“It’s so self-aware in a very funny way,” Brown adds. “Very of the moment, while remaining timeless, which is why you can watch the first Scream and the jokes hold up. It’s just as good as it was then.”
But as much as Scream is a fresh take on the franchise, it hasn’t lost sight of what came before. The film is dedicated to Craven, who died in 2015. Shelton worked with him on Scream 4, his last movie, and believes the new film is a worthy continuation.
“The filmmakers went to great lengths to continue his legacy and continue what he started, which was so groundbreaking, this really unique tone of being self-referencing, and terrifying, and funny, and with wild characters, and there was just nothing quite like it when the first one came out,” she says. “And Matt and Tyler, our directors, they’re great students of horror, they’re passionate about horror, and they really wanted to make Wes proud.”
Scream hits theaters this January 14. In the meantime, check out our guide to the best horror movies of all time for the ultimate scary movie marathon.
The Unexpected Gift of ‘Scream 4’! [Horror Queers Podcast]
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F*ck with the Original / Hayden Panettiere Is Always Right.
It just wouldn’t be a new year without Scream, right? After celebrating the OG Scream on its 25th anniversary back in December (along with seasonal treats like Batman Returns, Fear No Evil, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Witchboard‘s 35th anniversary), Trace and I are FINALLY discussing one of our fave meta films. And we had so much to say, we had to break it into 2 (!) episodes!
In Scream 4 (2011), writer Kevin Williamson returns to the franchise and Wes Craven directs one last time as Sidney (Neve Campbell) returns to Woodsboro as a new slate of murders begin. While Sheriff Dewey (David Arquette) tries to dissuade his wife Gale (Courteney Cox) to stay out of the investigation, high schoolers Jill (Emma Roberts), Kirby (Hayden Panettiere), Trevor (Nico Tortorella), Robbie (Erik Knudsen) and Charlie (Rory Culkin) are caught in the cross-hairs of a new killing spree.
So which one (or two) of them is the murderer?
Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get a new episode every Wednesday. You can subscribe on iTunes/Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, iHeartRadio, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Amazon Music, Acast, Google Podcasts, and RSS.
Episode 159 – Scream 4 (2011)
Part 1
This is not f*cking Trevor, but it is a new year and that means we’re covering another Scream film! To kick off our fourth year(!!!), we’re finally (finally!) covering Wes Craven’s Scream 4 (2011) in a discussion that proved so big we had to split it in two!
Join us as we travel back to Woodsboro to discuss the troubled production (Weinstein woes, rewrites, reshoots, etc.) before Trace’s better half Ari Drew pops in to discuss the ins & outs of one of the screenplay’s early drafts.
Plus: we rake some of Scream 4‘s harshest critics across the coals, review some of those last-minute casting changes and discuss the reappraisal that the film has seen over the past few years.
Part 2
Ready for seconds? In Part 2 of our super-sized discussion on Scream 4, we are going through the iconic film beat by beat and deleted scene by deleted scene.
Expect plenty of praise for the women: Marley Shelton, Alison Brie, Courteney Cox, Neve Campbell, Hayden Panettiere, and, of course, Emma Roberts, who absolutely steals the show as Jill Roberts.
Plus: our reactions to the increased gore, Joe’s continued disdain for Britt Robertson, Trace’s fave Ghostface & Jill line readings, debates about Robbie’s queerness and why this film is the gift that just keeps giving.
Cross out Scream 4!
Coming up on Wednesday: We’re kicking off a new series called “under seen or underrated” with Canadian rape revenge/exploitation film American Mary (2012). CW: sexual assault & torture
P.S. Subscribe to our Patreon for more than 156+ hours of additional content! This month, we’re covering the new Scream (2022), visually impaired thriller See For Me and Edgar Wright’s Last Night in Soho. Plus: the results of the 2021 Hereditaries, our version of the horror Oscars, and an audio commentary on last year’s delightful Psycho Goreman!
Dylan Minnette thrilled to become part of ‘Scream’ franchise
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It isn’t just the kills, thrills and reveals that define this fifth entry — though Minnette claims some of the murders in this film rank as among the most memorable in the franchise. The production was determined to pay homage to the franchise’s mastermind, Wes Craven. The man who directed the first four films in the series as well as other horror classics such as “A Nightmare on Elm Street” died in 2015. Minnette’s character’s name, Wes, is a tribute to the “Master of Horror.”
‘Scream’ horror franchise has Michigan ties
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This weekend marks the release of “Scream,” the fifth installment of the 25-year-old horror franchise.
For the uninitiated, the first “Scream” was released Dec. 18, 1996 and grossed $173 million against a $15 million budget. It also received critical acclaim and revitalized the horror genre, which was dormant thanks to a series of box office bombs and an influx of straight-to-video sequels to established horror franchises. It was a combination of a whodunit mystery and dark comedy that satirized horror movie clichés.
Set in fictional Woodsboro, Calif., the masked serial killer(s) Ghostface targets Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell, “Party of Five”). Alongside Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox, “Friends”) and Dewey Riley (David Arquette, “Eight Legged Freaks”), Sidney has lived to fight again in 1997’s “Scream 2,” 2000’s “Scream 3,” 2011’s “Scream 4” and this weekend’s “Scream.” The first four films were directed by the late horror auteur Wes Craven, creator/director of “A Nightmare on Elm Street.”
In the fifth “Scream,” a new Ghostface terrorizes Woodsboro, leaving behind a trail of death. Once again, Sidney, Gale, and Dewey must join forces to put an end to Ghostface’s murder spree.
The “Scream” franchise has its share of Michigan roots. Lansing native Matthew Lillard (“Good Girls”) appeared in the first movie. “Scream 4” was filmed in Michigan – particularly Wayne and Washtenaw Counties – in 2010 through the state’s short-lived movie tax incentive program, which Gov. Rick Snyder later eliminated.
Local 4’s Devin Scillian and former Local 4 meteorologist Kim Adams made cameos in “Scream 4” and both share fond memories of working on the film. In fact, Adams spoke the last word in the movie.
“I’m not usually the type that needs to have the last word,” she recalled. “But in this case, it was pretty cool!”
Adams spoke about meeting Craven in Ann Arbor when a local agent asked her to audition. According to Adams, people were coming in and out of the audition room in five minutes or less. However, when Craven learned she was a meteorologist who once flew with the Blue Angels (the U.S. Navy’s flight demonstration squad), it turned into a 45-minute conversation she’ll never forget.
“(Craven) told me as a young boy he was fascinated with the weather and wanted to be a pilot, but he was a sickly child that spent a lot of time in his room,” said Adams. “Long story short: I never even read for the part! Wes said, “No need, you’re definitely in this movie!’”
Adams got her makeup done together with Campbell and Hayden Panettiere (“Heroes”).
“They were the stars of the movie… but they made me feel like a true part of the cast,” said Adams. “I take full credit for introducing Hayden to the joys of (the Somerset Collection in Troy). She had no idea Detroit had such amazing malls, restaurants and small town boutiques.”
Adams stayed in touch with Craven after “Scream 4.” Craven died in 2015 of a brain tumor. He was 76.
“Wes and I kept in touch because he really wanted to fly with the Blue Angels and I had the connections. Unfortunately, he never got the opportunity to climb into the No. 7 jet. But I will never forget his kindness, soft spoken demeanor, and genuine love of his craft,” said Adams.
In Scillian’s case, he filmed his scene around 3 a.m. He originally had two lines of dialogue that expanded into a paragraph. Craven asked Scillian how long it would take to memorize it.
“That’s where preparation meets opportunity because in the TV business, we have to memorize a lot of things in a short period of time,” recalled Scillian. “Everybody was waiting on me to get this shot so they could go home. It probably took 1-2 minutes to get it memorized. When I said I was ready, Wes looked at me like I was crazy — ‘Okay, let’s roll.’ I did it in one take and he’s like ‘Wow!’ I told him, ‘That’s what TV news-people do.’”
To thank him, Craven sent Scillian a bottle of wine.
“It was so fun,” said Scillian. “That was my night with the great Wes Craven.”
Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett – who co-directed “Devil’s Due” – co-directed the fifth “Scream.” During Dec. 21’s Facebook Live chat, they and producer Chad Villella (“Ready or Not”) spoke about the pressure they felt succeeding Craven.
“There’s nothing but pressure! We take that very seriously. We’re mega-fans of Wes Craven and everything he’s built over the years,” said Villella. “I think, with this franchise particularly, this one holds a special place in all of our hearts. We come at it as mega-fans of everything ‘Scream.’ I think after living with ‘Scream’ all these years… and really dissecting what (Craven) did, the pressure was high. The entire team took the challenge head-on and approached it as fans.”
Added Bettinelli-Olpin: “We take the subversion ‘Scream’ has built into its DNA very seriously. That’s one of the things, big and small, throughout the movie.”
IF YOU GO: “Scream” will be released Friday, Jan. 14. Check local listings.