Wanting to laugh and knowing what kind of laughs to expect should be key for anyone planning to see a comedy on the big screen. Few things are worse than a bland comedy where the jokes fall flat. Scary Movie not only returns with a title mocking later-in-life sequels/reboots that drop all numbers and articles (much like the 5th Scream), but also with the assurance that the Wayans family are back in control. Whether or not that excites someone should be enough to let them know what they are in for. I respect the Wayans as an institution more than I generally like their movies, but their return has at least led to the series’ best sequel.
A strong opening scene featuring the first of many notable guest stars kicks things off, letting us know this movie has the recent Scream films in mind when it comes to story structure, and that it’s not unaware of the conversations surrounding legacy sequels. That this entry is willing to play along with what it means to be a return to a long-running series allows some of the cleverer aspects of the script by Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Keenan Ivory Wayans, Craig Wayans, and Rick Alvarez to land better than some may expect. With that in mind, getting into the setup merely means rehashing the plot of Scream (2022).
That said, there are characters to contend with. There’s a younger cast that represents the newer cast members of said Scream movie, but there’s also the return of the original cast. Notably, however, there’s perhaps more time spent this time around with Marlon and Shawn’s characters (Marlon especially) than with Anna Faris and Regina Hall. That could be because Scary Movie is directed by Michael Tiddes this time, who has worked with Marlon on his 5 previous comedies. It’s worth noting, as it serves as a barometer of what people enjoy most in this franchise.
If one enjoys Marlon’s Shorty, the perpetually high and loud goofball who is more likely to party with Ghostface than be attacked by him, this movie has plenty of that. For those who enjoy Shawn’s Ray, and the constant joke of him being “secretly” gay, well, enjoy plenty more of that here (and Happy Pride, by the way). With that said, as specific and funny as it may be to see him reference “I Am Delivert!” (down to the costuming), having less Faris and Hall than expected does feel like an unfortunate decision.
Part of what I enjoy most about 2000’s Scary Movie is how it allows the comedic acting to shine. Yes, some gags are very funny, some that aren’t, and there are certain characters that really either worked or didn’t (Dave Sheridan’s Doofy), but there’s a reason Faris and Hall became much bigger stars thanks to this series. They have the comic chops to lean into both physical gags and those that showcase their general talent as performers. With that in mind, Hall does land pretty much everything she gets to do. At the same time, Faris seems clearly into being back on board, but not put to full effect following some initial scenes featuring her channeling Halloween (2018)’s Jamie Lee Curtis.
However, given the sheer amount of material the Wayans can poke fun at, maybe it’s not important to focus on screentime. At 90 minutes (a respectable length for a spoof movie, considering that Scary Movie V’s story ends at the 71-minute mark, and then adds 16 minutes’ worth of credits and bloopers), there’s something to appreciate about the vast amount of jokes crammed into this movie, even if it ends up feeling overwritten (with guaranteed deleted scenes based on the poster alone). Given the film’s nature, it never feels all that forced. As we have to reconnect with certain characters or bounce around in the story, based on the nature of an ensemble legacy sequel, it leaves room for us to get jokes stemming from such films as Longlegs, M3GAN, Sinners, Terrifier 3, Final Destination: Bloodlines, Ma, Smile, The Substance, and Michael for some reason. Do all of the jokes land? No, but I can appreciate the effort.
Key to the film’s success is not only that I laughed more than I didn’t and at least had a smile on my face for much of the movie, but also knowing the intention here. As much as Scary Movie is a raunchy and raucous R-rated comedy that wants to promote the idea of being willing to cross all the lines, it’s far from mean.
The edginess of the 2000s film and its first sequel came from being a level of R-rated rarely seen in mainstream comedies (and certainly not Black mainstream comedies). Now, while the audiences that view this may be more inclined to call foul on some of the humor, with context and a general understanding of the Wayans’ sense of humor, nothing about the jokes presented speaks to an idea that they have a true agenda against any particular group, and would therefore need to take them down a peg by way of this movie. There’s so much equal-opportunity plays at who they intend to “offend” that it all feels rather moot, no matter how sophomoric and juvenile the humor ends up becoming (I’d even argue there’s an effort of showing tolerance, idiotically handled as it may be, yet still well-intentioned).
Because of that approach, the film ends up feeling tamer than one might expect, given the content we see. It’s not even as gory as the first Scary Movie (little as there may have been to see there). However, without delving too far into it, the film’s main agenda seems to be the way the Hollywood system treats creatives, which yields a surprisingly effective final section, at least conceptually. That’s not me saying the script deserves a ton of extra credit for nuance. Still, for a film that was going either way on so many jokes throughout, I was pleased it ended on a high note that was actually daring as far as what we’re meant to take away from it.
If nothing else, the thing to take away from Scary Movie is that it attempts to pack in as much comedy as possible and let viewers have a good time at the movies. It’s full of cameos, and its assembly isn’t as competent as that of former director Keenen Ivory Wayans. Still, it gets the job done without feeling as though no one was trying. There is effort here, along with some highly specific gags that spoke to me as both a movie fan and a Black person, which I was happy to appreciate. Given how much I only care for moments of some of the previous sequels, having the Wayans return to a franchise they created (which was taken away from them by the Weinsteins), at the very least, makes me pleased to see this group carry things forward in the silliest of ways. At its best, though, this one can be a screamer.
Scary Movie opens in theaters on June 5, 2026.
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