The new Scream movie is quite the scream. The horror sequel that combined the original cast with a roster of fresh faces has quickly risen to the top of the box office charts. After a solid opening weekend putting production studio Paramount Pictures in the red, Scream has hit a huge box office milestone after less than three weeks in theaters.
According to Box Office Mojo, the new Scream movie has officially made over $100 million worldwide ($106,238,780 as of January 31, to be exact) and surpassed Scream 4’s total box office profits of $97 million. Cinema releases have been hit or miss recently, with dual streaming premieres and the pandemic discouraging audiences from making the trek to their local theaters. But after Scream had a positive performance on opening night, producers were optimistic that the new installment in the spooky franchise would bring home the bacon. And with a budget of just $24 million, Scream has certainly proved to be a worthy investment.
Another point in Scream’s favor is positive responses from fans and critics alike. The previous installments, Scream 3 and Scream 4, were not quite up to snuff, but the 2022 reboot/sequel has changed viewers’ tunes. It currently has a 78% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, a far cry from Scream 3’s lackluster 41%.
Recent successes like Scream may be indicating a brighter future for cinemas. Movie theaters have been concerned about viewer turnout in the wake of the pandemic, and many high-profile films in 2021 had middling profits that were attributed to in-home streaming releases. Even major projects that received positive reviews from critics, like the Stephen Spielberg musical West Side Story and Ridley Scott’s historical drama The Last Duel, were not able to recoup their high production budgets.
Outside of Marvel blockbusters like Spider-Man: No Way Home and Venom: Let There Be Carnage, horror films with lower budgets have seemed to rule the roost. In addition to Scream’s relative success, Halloween Kills made over $131 million at the global box office, while The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It made over $200 million worldwide. It may also be a sign of shifting demographics: older viewers have been slower to return to theaters than their younger counterparts, which may account for the diminishing returns on dramas and musicals.
Either way, Scream has defied expectations and revitalized a flagging franchise. The film shows no signs of slowing down, with it coming in behind Spider-Man: No Way Home as the second biggest movie in theaters right now. It bodes well for a possible Scream follow-up - we’ll have to wait and see if the stars align.
Scream is now playing in theaters everywhere. Already caught up? Check out these upcoming movies set to hit the silver screen in 2022.
