‘Scream’ Terrorizes Box Office With $3.5M in Previews

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Scream made plenty of noise as it opened in select theaters Thursday night, grossing a strong $3.5 million in Thursday previews despite challenges posed by the omicron variant and another surge in COVID-19 cases.

The slasher pic began rolling out at 7 p.m. local time across the country in roughly 3,000 locations. By Friday morning, it will be playing in more than 3,666 theaters.

The reboot — featuring original Scream stars including Courteney Cox and Neve Campbell alongside franchise newcomers — hopes to transform into the first box office hit of 2022.

The slasher film opens more than 25 years after Wes Craven’s Scream turned into a horror sensation. The new film, from Paramount and Spyglass, is the fifth title in the series and a direct sequel to 2011’s Scream 4. It is also the first not to be directed by Wes Craven, who passed away in 2015.

Instead, Matt Bettinello-Olpin and Tyler Gillett share directing duties. This time, the Scream team sees franchise mainstays Cox and Campbell, along with Marty Shelton, David Arquette, Skeet Ulrich, Heather Matarazzo and Roger L. Jackson reprise their roles, while newcomers include Jenna Ortega, Melissa Barrera, Mason Gooding, Dylan Minnette and Jack Quaid.

Scream is widely expected to be a boost for the box office over the long Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend with a four-day gross as high as $30 million or more. (Horror and superheroes are the two genres that have fared the best throughout the pandemic era, as they attract moviegoers ages 18-34, the demo most willing to return to the mulitplex.)

Last year, Paramount’s A Quiet Place Part II took in $4.9 million in Thursday previews; ditto for Universal’s Halloween Kills. Both were follow-ups to more recent hits. Scream came in well ahead of Candyman, another pandemic horror release that grossed $1.9 million in previews. In terms of pre-pandemic films, M. Night Shyamalan’s Glass earned $3.7 million in previews in early 2019.

Scream follows a new Ghostface-masked killer who pursues a group of teenagers trying to learn about the town’s past.

Do You Like Scary Movies About Scary Movies Laughing at Scary Movies? Then You’ll Love the New ‘Scream’

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There are certain rules that one must abide by in order to successfully survive a horror movie: You can never have sex, never drink or do drugs, never say you’ll “be right back.” But there are also certain rules that characters have to adhere to in order to navigate a meta-horror movie, like: Be extremely well-versed in the rules of horror movies, especially the classic slashers (your Halloweens, your Friday the 13ths, your Nightmare on Elm Streets). You should be enough of a fan to recognize potentially stabby situations — don’t go in the basement or the woods! avoid bloody valentines, terror trains and prom nights! — but not so much of a fan that you put on creepy masks and murder your classmates. And if you’ve lived through a franchise’s first entry, make sure you watch the movies that exploit your “real-life” trauma playing within the movieverse you’re in, just in case art imitates life imitating art imitating…say, just how deep does this rabbit hole go?

A quarter of a century ago, Scream winked and nudged and butchered its way into pop culture by assuming folks were fluent enough in genre conventions to know how those movies worked. It’s a hell of a tightrope act that screenwriter Kevin Williamson and director Wes Craven nimbly tiptoed, balancing in-jokes for a generation raised on VCR horror binges while still delivering thrills, chills and adrenaline rushes. Even in a decade characterized by pomo self-consciousness and mondo meta virtuosity (the ’60s got Godard and Dylan, but the ’90s gave us Tarantino and Beck), this 1996 hit relied as much on a shared knowingness as it did that signature Ghostface mask. And when the series started inserting their own reflective rip-offs within the franchise itself. i.e. the Stab movies that dramatized those horrific teen massacres seen in Scream, you got a bonus M.C. Escher buzz — the joy of watching a slasher eat its own tail.

Fast-forward a few decades, and brand-name nostalgia is even bigger business; the nature of franchising and fandom, however, has changed. Scream 2022 is nothing if not extremely up-to-date, knowing very well that it’s re-entering a poposphere in which the conversation is less “how cool were those movies!?” and more “how can I keep permanently reliving my childhood?” After a suitably snarky update to the original opening — another phone call in which the voice of Roger L. Jackson sinisterly asks a babysitter if she like scary movies…only now they’re arguing about the merits of “elevated horror” — word goes out that there’s a new Ghostface killer in Woodsboro. A potential victim, Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega), ends up in the hospital. Her long-estranged sister, Sam (Melissa Barrera), rushes back to her old home town to take care of her. They both have a connection to that first wave of killings way back in the day, though only one of them knows it.

Tara’s high school friends, made up of the usual assortment of pop-savvy jocks, geeks, kooks and mall-goths, are ready to play amateur detectives and find out who’s behind the Gen-Z Ghostface masks. Ditto Richie (The Boys’ Jack Quaid), Sam’s boyfriend who’s along for the ride. Meanwhile, a visit to the ex-lawman Dewey Riley (David Arquette) after more bodies drop prompts him to reach out to both Gale Weathers (Courtney Cox), now a bigshot TV anchor in New York, and former final-girl extraordinaire Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell). It’s around this point that the smartest member of this would-be Scooby Gang, played by Yellowjackets‘ Jasmin Savoy Brown, figures out that these aren’t just copycat killings. They’re all in the middle of a “requel.”

Yes, a requel — the distinctly 21st century Frankenstein’s monster of a franchise entry in which legacy characters from beloved series pair up with fresh blood in the name of breathing new life into an old but highly beloved intellectual property. It’s somehow both a reboot and a sequel, a “return to basics” and a reset after diminishing returns. If your film is part of a series [cough] but you ditch the numbers after the title [cough, cough] and simply name your new entry after the first movie [cough, COUGH, sputter, dead], then you may be a requel. God forbid you anger those who worship the brand like a religion, and feel that those who somehow mess with the integrity of such canon fodder be subject to a campaign of online harassment, name-calling and worse. You might get Mary Sue-d.

And while it may be spoilery to say much else, it’s safe to note that this type of toxic fandom is exactly what Scream ’22 is sharpening its knives for as it goes in for the meta-kill. It’s a smart way of tackling a topic that’s plagued both long-in-the-tooth franchises and relatively new cinematic universes — that some sort of purity of essence must be maintained, and that fans are entitled to protect their cherished memories because, say, tweaking a detail or letting a POC character enter their pop culture sandbox is a personal attack. And the concept of taking such folks to task acts as a through line to the countless in-house callbacks and references to other movies, even when this particular house of mirrors feels like it’s about to collapse in on itself. It’s hard to say what the directorial duo of Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (the same guys who gave us the equally cheeky Ready or Not) and screenwriters James Vanderbilt (Zodiac) and Guy Busick (Castle Rock) might have at stake here. But they all definitely have an axe to grind, and are more than willing to take said axe to a slaughterfest set on sacred genre ground.

Do you like scary movies about scary movies that somehow laugh at yet pay reverence to other scary movies? Then you will love this new Scream. Do you prefer your horror to not be so back-pattingly clever about all of that, and to remove tongues from mouths rather than place them firmly in cheeks? Then you’re shit outta luck here, my friend, though that’s been some purists’ beef with the series since Drew Barrymore first put the Jiffy-Pop on the stove and picked up her phone. It also runs out of steam long before it runs out the clock, which has also been a staple of the series as well. Yet you have to applaud how boldly this fifth entry tries to flip the bird to the entire rinse-repeat-regurgitate idea of trapping film series in amber, while also delivering you the thrill of the familiar and those dopamine bumps that come with the pang of recognition. It wants to eat its cake and stab it repeatedly, too. And if you don’t like it, watch out. They might come after you in the next requel.

New documentary details how Louisiana serial killer inspired the original ‘Scream’ movie

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Discovery+ will be launching a two-hour documentary as part of their Shock Docs series in honor of the new entry into the “Scream” franchise titled “Scream: The True Story” on Jan. 14.

In December of 1996, Wes Craven’s “Scream” made its silver screen debut and revitalized the slasher film genre. This now-iconic piece of cinematic history was greatly inspired by a drifter in Florida who murdered five college students over the course of three days in August of 1990. The drifter? Shreveport native Danny Rolling.

Rolling’s reign of terror began in Shreveport in November of 1989, when he broke into the home of 24-year-old Julie Grissom where he killed her, her 8-year-old nephew and her father.

Fleeing to Florida after shooting his father, a Shreveport police officer, in May of the following year, Rolling committed the crimes that would later earn him the moniker “The Gainesville Ripper.”

When finally caught and charged for the Florida murders nearly two years later, Rolling claimed to have been driven to do so by an alternate personality named “Gemini.” In February of 1994, Rolling pleaded guilty to his crimes while his mother recounted the abuse Rolling had received at the hands of his father to the jury. Several psychiatrists testified that a Rolling suffered from a severe personality disorder, but stated that Rolling understood what he was doing at the time of his crimes.

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Rolling was found guilty on all five counts in late March and sentenced to death in April 1994. He was executed at Florida State Prison on Oct. 25, 2006.

In 1994, an episode of ABC News’ “Turning Point” about Rolling inspired screenwriter Kevin Williamson to write “Woodsboro Murders,” which later became the script for “Scream.”

The cult horror classic draws on various “horror movie rules” to explore the story about two teenage boys who terrorize a small town.

In the new documentary, paranormal investigator Steve Shippy and psychic medium Cindy Kaza team up to uncover the truth behind Rolling’s insanity claims.

The duo will be the first to ever conduct a paranormal investigation at the campsite near the University of Florida campus where the murders took place and in his childhood home, where current homeowners complain of aggressive poltergeist activity.

The “Scream” film finds a new set of teenagers being terrorized by the infamous Ghostface to resurrect secrets from the town’s past 25 years after the original series of murders. While this will be the fifth installment of the franchise, it is being marketed as a relaunch and will be the first to not be directed by Wes Craven after his passing in 2015.

“Scream” and “Scream: The True Story” will both premier on Jan. 14. You can catch the new film in theaters everywhere and the documentary on Discovery+ with a subscription.

Subscribe today for more great content from Meredith G. White.

Meredith G. White is the arts and culture reporter for the Shreveport Times. You can find her on Facebook as Meredith G. White, on Instagram and Twitter as @meredithgwhite, and email her at mgwhite@gannett.com.

Scream confirms fan favourite survived a previous movie

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Given its name, it’s not a surprise that the new Scream movie mostly links back to the iconic original, but this isn’t an ‘ignore all sequels’ situation.

Scream is very much a follow-up to everything that’s come before, and it turns out that Marley Shelton’s return as Judy Hicks isn’t the only Scream 4 connection. This particular connection is such a brief moment, though, that you might have missed it.

Just because it’s a blink-and-miss-it Easter egg, that doesn’t mean it’s not a major revelation for Scream fans. To explain its significance we need to go into some minor spoilers for the new movie, so look away now if you’re staying totally spoiler-free.

Paramount Pictures

Ever since Scream 4, fans have been debating the fate of Hayden Panettiere’s Kirby Reed. The character – who takes on the Randy-esque role as a horror-movie expert – was the standout fan favourite of the fourth movie.

In the movie, she’s stabbed by one of the killers, Charlie Walker (Rory Culkin), when she goes to help him escape from Ghostface. He stabs her in the stomach and taunts her that dying “doesn’t happen as fast as it does in the movies”. Crucially though, we never actually see confirmation that she is dead.

Even on the director’s commentary for Scream 4, Wes Craven revealed that Kirby is “still moving” after the attack. He revealed that in the original shooting script, it was made clear that she had survived before that was cut from the movie.

But fear not, Kirby fans. Scream confirms that she did survive Charlie’s attack and she’s very much alive.

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While Panettiere doesn’t reprise her role in the new movie, the confirmation comes from an unexpected place: a recommended YouTube video.

After the early attacks by Ghostface, Richie (Jack Quaid) is shown catching up on the Stab franchise which he’s supposedly never seen. He’s come to Woodsboro with his girlfriend Sam (Melissa Barrera) after the attack on her sister Tara (Jenna Ortega).

Richie is watching a video on YouTube that absolutely slates the latest Stab movie, which, even though it’s the eighth in the series, is just called Stab (wink wink). It’s hated by Stab fans as it goes against everything they expect, including having Ghostface wield a flamethrower.

(In another meta level to the video, it’s hosted by James A Janisse and Chelsea Rebecca, the hosts of ace real-life horror YouTube channel Dead Meat.)

The video is a fun gag, but the real excitement comes from the recommended videos we see on Richie’s screen. One such video is an “interview with survivor Kirby Reed” with a picture of Kirby as the thumbnail.

Dimension Films/Kobal/Shutterstock

Now, it could just be a nod to fan reaction to Kirby’s fate and not entirely serious, but the makers of Scream must have known it would be spotted.

There were even some fans who thought Panettiere might reprise her role in the new movie, especially after she posted a photo of herself in December 2019 sporting Kirby’s hairstyle. As mentioned, this doesn’t happen, but if this Easter egg turns out to just be a gag, then fan anger will follow.

The star receives a special thanks in the credits, likely because she would have to have given permission for the character to be used in the movie. (Adam Brody is among the names mentioned too, but his character, Deputy Hoss, is almost definitely dead and doesn’t appear. He did work with the Scream directors on Ready or Not, so it could be that connection.)

It surely means that Kirby being alive is canon in the Scream franchise and, who knows, maybe we will get to see her again in a potential sequel. For now, we can just make do with the fact she’s alive.

Scream is out now in cinemas.

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Movie Review: SCREAM

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By ABBIE BERNSTEIN / Staff Writer

Rating: R

Stars: Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, Jack Quaid, Marley Shelton, Dylan Minnette, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Sonia Ammar, Mikey Madison, Mason Gooding, Kyle Gallner

Writers: James Vanderbilt & Guy Busick, based on characters created by Kevin Williamson

Directors: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett

Distributor: Paramount

Release Date: January 14, 2022

SCREAM tries in many ways to be confusing. This isn’t just because the new 2022 release is titled SCREAM, just like the 1996 original, with no numeral in the title, even though this is effectively SCREAM 5. As always, the filmmakers want to keep us on our toes, moving the players around like pieces in a shell game, so we’re trying to remember who is where, armed with what, and whether they have an alibi for an attack.

For those who need a quick refresher, SCREAM 2 was in 1997, SCREAM 3 was in 2000, and the most recent, SCREAM 4, was in 2011. All of the previous SCREAMS were directed by the late Wes Craven, and all but SCREAM 3 were written by Kevin Williamson, who serves as an executive producer here.

The new SCREAM is directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett, and scripted by James Vanderbilt & Guy Busick. They are trying to be original, but not too original, and they would very much like us to know that they know that we know what they’re going for.

How do we know that they know that we know? Well, ever since SCREAM 2, there has been a film franchise within the SCREAM universe called STAB. This allows the characters and the filmmakers to comment on the SCREAM movies.

The meta commentary in the new film will bring any casual viewers up to speed. However, there is so much of it that there are moments when SCREAM threatens to go from being a motion picture to a protracted Twitter argument with visuals. We understand the filmmakers have big shoes to fill, and again, they want us to know that they are well aware of this and are going about it with the greatest respect, but there’s only so much deflection of anticipated criticism an audience can take.

On the other hand, complaining about self-reference in a SCREAM movie is a little like complaining about coffee, Slushies and chips in a 7-11. Self-reference, and reference to other horror films in general, is what distinguishes this cohort of slashers from others in the subgenre. The makers of the current SCREAM are actually pretty smart about it.

To give the set-up in a non-spoilery fashion, it is fair to say that SCREAM, like its predecessors, takes place in suburban Woodsboro, California. There are new protagonists this time out, a mixture of teens and twenty-somethings. Some of them are played by Melissa Barrera (of IN THE HEIGHTS and VIDA), Jenna Ortega, Jack Quaid, Dylan Minnette, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Sonia Ammar, Mikey Madison, and Mason Gooding.

Since they appear prominently in the posters and advertising, it can also be stated that SCREAM stalwarts Neve Campbell (as Sydney Prescott), Courteney Cox (as Gale Weathers), and David Arquette (as Dewey Riley) are also on hand. Their characters become involved when Woodsboro is once more stalked by a knife-wielding killer in black robes and a mask.

There are definite highlights here, including a moment of startling emotional potency. The franchise veterans all commit to their roles and the newcomers are all on target. Several truly get into the spirit of things, but to single them out might be to tease too much. Let’s just say that one of them gets a genuinely great and well-placed line.

For those who have enjoyed the SCREAM movies so far, this fills the bill fair and square. For those who’ve never seen one before, it seems like it should be easy enough to jump on board here. For those who have seen any of the previous movies and disliked them, it’s hard to imagine what they’d be doing watching this in the first place.

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