| Scary Movie | |
| Studio: | Dimension Films (1–5) Miramax (4; 6) |
| Distributor: | Miramax Films (1–3) The Weinstein Company (4–5) Paramount Pictures (6) |
| Released: | 2000–present |
| Runtime: | 423 minutes (5 films) |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Budget: | $177 million (5 films) |
| Gross: | $896.5 million (5 films) |
Scary Movie is a series of American parody films, mainly focusing on spoofing horror films. The films have a combined gross of almost $900 million at the worldwide box office. The two recurring actresses are Anna Faris and Regina Hall as Cindy Campbell and Brenda Meeks, respectively, appearing in all installments except the fifth film.
The franchise was developed by Keenen Ivory Wayans, Shawn Wayans, and Marlon Wayans, who wrote and directed the first two entries, with the latter two also starring. Produced by Dimension Films, with Miramax Films co-producing the fourth, the films saw distribution through Miramax Films (1–4) and The Weinstein Company (4–5). A sixth film is in development as of 2024 with Miramax producing and Paramount Pictures handling distribution.
| Film | U.S. release date | Director | Screenwriter(s) | Story by | Producer(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scary Movie | Keenen Ivory Wayans | Phil Beauman, Shawn Wayans, Aaron Seltzer, Buddy Johnson, Marlon Wayans & Jason Friedberg | Lee R. Mayes & Eric L. Gold | ||
| Scary Movie 2 | Dave Polsky, Craig Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Alyson Fouse, Marlon Wayans, Greg Grabianski & Michael Anthony Snowden | Eric L. Gold | |||
| Scary Movie 3 | David Zucker | Pat Proft & Craig Mazin | Robert K. Weiss | ||
| Scary Movie 4 | Pat Proft, Craig Mazin & Jim Abrahams | Craig Mazin | Craig Mazin & Robert K. Weiss | ||
| Scary Movie 5 | Malcolm D. Lee | Pat Proft & David Zucker | David Zucker & Phil Dornfeld | ||
| Scary Movie 6 | 2025 | Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans & Keenen Ivory Wayans | Neal H. Moritz, Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Keenen Ivory Wayans & Rick Alvarez | ||
See main article: Scary Movie. Scary Movie is the first film of the franchise and directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans.[1] It was the highest-grossing film of the series, with $278,019,771 worldwide. It is a spoof of several films and television series, with a primary focus on Scream (1996) and I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997).[2]
After a group of teenagers (consisting of Cindy Campbell (Anna Faris), Bobby Prinze (Jon Abrahams), Buffy Gilmore (Shannon Elizabeth), Greg Phillipe (Lochlyn Munro), Ray Wilkins (Shawn Wayans), and Brenda Meeks (Regina Hall) accidentally hit a man with their car, they decide to dump his body in a lake and never talk about it again. A year later someone wearing a Ghostface mask and robe kills them one by one.
See main article: Scary Movie 2. Scary Movie 2 is the second film of the franchise. It grossed $141,220,678 worldwide with $71,308,997 in the U.S. This is the last installment 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.
The film starts with a parody of The Exorcist (1973), in which Megan Voorhees (sharing the same last name as the fictional serial killer Jason Voorhees) is possessed by Hugh Kane, and two priests, Father McFeely and Father Harris (James Woods and Andy Richter) have to force Hugh Kane out. But after Megan insults McFeely's mother he shoots her in the head. Cindy, Brenda, Ray, and Shorty return in this film. Greg, Buffy, and Bobby are replaced by Buddy (Christopher Masterson), Theo (Kathleen Robertson), and Alex (Tori Spelling). The film then merges into a parody of House on Haunted Hill (1999) with the story beginning when a perverted college professor, Professor Oldman (Tim Curry) and his wheel-chair bound assistant, Dwight (David Cross), plan to study ghosts inside a haunted mansion with the clueless teens as bait. At the house, strange things happen: Ray gets attacked by a clown (whom he also rapes), Shorty gets attacked by a living marijuana plant, Cindy gets in a fight with a possessed cat, and Dwight gets into an argument with a foul-mouthed bird. When they find out about the professor's plan they try to escape the house, finding out that there is a ghost who still lives in the house. They must defeat the ghost in order to escape.
See main article: Scary Movie 3. Scary Movie 3 is the third film of the franchise. With $220,673,217 earned worldwide,[3] it is the second most successful film in the series. The plot of the film is a spoof of The Ring and Signs (both 2002) as well as several other films and celebrities. Michael Jackson planned to sue the filmmakers for parodying him in such a way that made him seem like a child molester and having a fake nose.[4] This was the first Scary Movie film to receive a PG-13 rating in the United States as well as the first film to have no involvement from the Wayans family.[5] [6]
The film revolves around strange crop circles found near an old farm and the circulation of an unusual videotape. Upon watching this tape, the phone rings and a creepy voice says: "You're going to die in seven days". Cindy falls in love with a rapper named George (Simon Rex), a parody of Jimmy "B-Rabbit" Smith Jr. of 8 Mile (2002), when she hears that she is to die in seven days. Meanwhile, George and his older brother Tom (Charlie Sheen)—the farmers who discovered the crop circles in their corn field—learn that extraterrestrials are coming to Earth to destroy the killer responsible for the deaths of those who have watched the tape.
See main article: Scary Movie 4. Scary Movie 4 is the fourth film of the franchise. The film opened with $40 million at the weekend box office, making it the third best opening in the series. With a $178,049,620 at the worldwide box office, Scary Movie 4 ranks as the third highest grossing entry. The main target of spoof was War of the Worlds (2005), Saw, The Village and The Grudge (all three 2004). The film concludes the story-arc that began with the first film and is also the final film in the series to feature any of the original cast members.
See main article: Scary Movie 5. Scary Movie 5 is the fifth film of the franchise. It is the only film in the series to not feature Anna Faris and Regina Hall. The film was panned by critics and fans alike, and grossed $72,992,798 worldwide in the box office, thus being the least successful film in the franchise.
Jody (Ashley Tisdale) and Dan Sanders (Simon Rex) move into a new home after adopting three mysterious children. There are video cameras to record the events, and Jody and Dan soon discover that a powerful creature known as "Mama" is haunting them, trying to claim their newly adopted children. The film Mama (2013) is primarily parodied with scenes parodying the Paranormal Activity film series and Black Swan (2010).
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. Principal photography is expected to commence in late 2024 and is projected for a 2025 release date.[7] [8] It will be the first film in the series not to be produced by Dimension Films (due to the company being inactive since 2019) and the second film in the series to be produced by Miramax. In October 2024, it was confirmed that the Wayans brothers would reunite for the first time in 18 years to develop the new film.[9]
| Character | Films | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scary Movie | Scary Movie 2 | Scary Movie 3 | Scary Movie 4 | Scary Movie 5 | |
| 2000 | 2001 | 2003 | 2006 | 2013 | |
| Cynthia "Cindy" Campbell | |||||
| Brenda Meeks | Regina Hall | ||||
| Shorty Meeks | Marlon Wayans | colspan="3" | |||
| Ray Wilkins | Shawn Wayans | colspan="3" | |||
| Bobby Prinze | Jon Abrahams | colspan="4" | |||
| Buffy Gilmore | Shannon Elizabeth | colspan="4" | |||
| Greg Phillipe | Lochlyn Munro | colspan="4" | |||
| Doofus "Doofy" Gilmore | Dave Sheridan | colspan="4" | |||
| Gail Halistorm | Cheri Oteri | colspan="4" | |||
| Sheriff Burke | Kurt Fuller | colspan="4" | |||
| Buddy Sanderson | Christopher Masterson | colspan="3" | |||
| Theo | Kathleen Robertson | colspan="3" | |||
| Dwight Hartman | David Cross | colspan="3" | |||
| Father McFreely | James Woods | colspan="3" | |||
| Professor Oldman | Tim Curry | colspan="3" | |||
| Alex Monday | Tori Spelling | colspan="3" | |||
| Hanson Ezekiel | Chris Elliott | Chris Elliott | |||
| Father Harris | Andy Richter | colspan="3" | |||
| Hugh Kane | Richard Moll | colspan="3" | |||
| Tom Logan Charlie | Charlie Sheen | Charlie Sheen | Charlie Sheen | ||
| George Logan Dan Sanders | Simon Rex | Simon Rex | Simon Rex | ||
| Mahalik | Anthony Anderson | ||||
| CJ | Kevin Hart | ||||
| President Harris | Leslie Nielsen | ||||
| Cody Campbell | Drew Mikuska | ||||
| Michael Jackson | Edward Moss | ||||
| Sue Logan | Jianna Ballard | colspan="2" | |||
| Tabitha | Marny Eng Naomi Lawson-Baird | colspan="2" | |||
| Ross Giggins | Jeremy Piven | colspan="2" | |||
| Carson Ward | Tim Stack | colspan="2" | |||
| Trooper Champlin | Camryn Manheim | colspan="2" | |||
| Agent Thompson | Ja Rule | colspan="2" | |||
| Sayaman | Ajay Naidu | colspan="2" | |||
| Aliens | Tom Kenny | colspan="2" | |||
| Aunt Shaneequa | colspan="2" | ||||
| Tom Ryan | Craig Bierko | ||||
| Robbie Ryan | Beau Mirchoff | ||||
| Rachel Ryan | Conchita Campbell | ||||
| Saw Villain | Craig Mazin | rowspan="2" | |||
| Laura Dash | |||||
| Japanese Ghost Boy | Garret Masuda | ||||
| Japanese Ghost Woman | Tomoko Sato | ||||
| Henry Hale | Bill Pullman | ||||
| Marilyn Heather Darcy | Molly Shannon | ||||
| Emma Norris | Cloris Leachman | ||||
| Jody Sanders | Ashley Tisdale | ||||
| Dan Sanders | Simon Rex | ||||
| Kathy | Gracie Whitton | ||||
| Lily | Ava Kolker | ||||
| Aiden | Dylan and Ryan Morris | ||||
| Kendra Brooks | Erica Ash | ||||
| Maria | Lidia Porto | ||||
| Caesar | Chris "Critter" Antonucci | ||||
| Mama | Scott Nery | ||||
| Heather Daltry | Molly Shannon | ||||
| Pierre | J. P. Manoux | ||||
| Martin Jacobs | Terry Crews | ||||
| Film | Crew/Detail | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Composer | Cinematographer | Editor(s) | Production companies | Distributing companies | Running time | MPA rating | ||
| Scary Movie | David Kitay | Francis Kenny | Mark Helfrich | Dimension Films, Wayans Bros. Entertainment, Gold/Miller Productions, Brad Grey Pictures | Miramax, Dimension Films | 1 hr 28 mins | R | |
| Scary Movie 2 | Mark McGrath | Steven Berstein | Tom Nordberg, Richard Pearson & Peter Teschner | 1 hr 22 mins | ||||
| Scary Movie 3 | James L. Venable | Mark Irwin | Jon Poll | Dimension Films, Gold/Miller Productions, Brad Grey Pictures | 1 hr 24 mins | PG-13 | ||
| Scary Movie 4 | Thomas E. Ackerman | Craig Herring & Tom Lewis | Miramax, Dimension Films, Brad Grey Pictures, 415 Project Films | The Weinstein Company, Dimension Films | 1 hr 23 mins | |||
| Scary Movie 5 | Steven Douglas Smith | Sam Seig | Dimension Films, Brad Grey Pictures, DZE | The Weinstein Company | 1 hr 26 mins | |||
| Untitled sixth film | Miramax | Paramount Pictures | ||||||
Scary Movies main parodies are of Scream (1996) and I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997), with rest elements of The Blair Witch Project (1999), The Sixth Sense (1999), The Matrix (1999), and The Usual Suspects (1995).
Scary Movie 2s primary target is The Haunting (1999), while the rest of the film contains traces parodies are The Exorcist (1973), What Lies Beneath (2000), Poltergeist (1982), Titanic (1997), The Amityville Horror (1979), Hollow Man (2000), and Charlie's Angels (2000).
Scary Movie 3s general parodies are of The Ring (2002) and Signs (2002). It also features elements of The Others (2001), Airplane! (1980), 8 Mile (2002), The Matrix Reloaded (2003), The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), and Minority Report (2002).
Scary Movie 4s parodies are of the Saw films, The Village (2004), The Grudge (2004), and War of the Worlds (2005), as well as Million Dollar Baby (2004) and Brokeback Mountain (2005).
Scary Movie 5s central areas of satire are the Paranormal Activity films, Mama (2013), Black Swan (2010), and Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011). Other notable parodies are those of The Cabin in the Woods (2011), Evil Dead (2013), Fifty Shades of Grey, Inception (2010), Sinister (2012), and Madea.
| Film | Release date | Box office revenue | Box office ranking | Budget | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North America | Other territories | Worldwide | All time domestic (US) | All time worldwide | ||||
| Scary Movie[10] | July 7, 2000 | $157,019,771 | $121,000,000 | $278,019,771 |
|
| $19 million | |
| Scary Movie 2[11] | July 4, 2001 | $71,308,997 | $69,911,681 | $141,220,678 |
| $45 million | ||
| Scary Movie 3[12] | October 24, 2003 | $110,003,217 | $110,670,000 | $220,673,217 |
|
| $48 million | |
| Scary Movie 4[13] [14] | April 14, 2006 | $90,710,620 | $87,552,000 | $178,262,620 |
| $45 million | ||
| Scary Movie 5[15] [16] | April 12, 2013 | $32,015,787 | $46,362,957 | $78,378,744 |
| $20 million | ||
| Total | $461,058,392 | $435,496,638 | $896,555,030 | $177 million | ||||
| Film | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scary Movie | 51% (117 reviews)[17] | 48 (32 reviews)[18] | |
| Scary Movie 2 | 13% (112 reviews)[19] | 29 (25 reviews)[20] | |
| Scary Movie 3 | 35% (131 reviews)[21] | 49 (27 reviews)[22] | |
| Scary Movie 4 | 34% (128 reviews)[23] | 40 (23 reviews)[24] | |
| Scary Movie 5 | 4% (52 reviews)[25] | 11 (16 reviews)[26] |