Melissa Barrera
Sam Carpenter
Overview
Twenty-five years after a streak of brutal murders shocked the quiet town of Woodsboro, a new killer has donned the Ghostface mask and begins targeting a group of teenagers to resurrect secrets from the town’s deadly past.
Cast
12 people
Reviews
5 min readThe Mask Never Lies—But the People Behind It Do
I’ve seen Scream (2022) three times now, and each viewing leaves me with the same unsettling thought: the scariest thing about this movie isn’t the knife, or the mask, or even the way the camera lingers just a second too long on a shadowy hallway. It’s the way the film knows exactly what we want from it—and how gleefully it refuses to give it to us. Not out of malice, but out of exhaustion.
This is a franchise that’s spent 25 years winking at the audience, and now, in its fifth installment, it’s finally too tired to keep up the act.
That exhaustion isn’t a flaw. It’s the point.
The opening sequence is a masterclass in slasher tension, and it’s the last time the movie feels truly alive. Jenna Ortega’s Tara Carpenter is home alone, recovering from a car accident, when Ghostface calls. The phone rings, the camera pushes in on her face, and for a moment, it’s 1996 all over again.
But then the film does something unexpected: it lets Tara fight back. She’s not a final girl yet, but she’s not a victim either. She grabs a knife, she stumbles, she screams—and when Ghostface finally lunges, the kill is brutal, unflinching, and over before you’re ready.
It’s not just a great Scream opening; it’s one of the best slasher sequences in years. And then the movie moves on, as if it’s already used up its best material.
That’s the pattern here. Scream (2022) is a film that knows its own rules so well it can’t help but break them, but it does so with a shrug. The meta-commentary is still sharp—there’s a hilarious dig at “elevated horror” and a jab at toxic fandom that feels painfully timely—but it lacks the bite of the original. Wes Craven’s Scream was a horror movie that loved horror movies, even as it dissected them.
This one feels like it’s going through the motions, and the self-awareness doesn’t feel like affection so much as obligation.
Audience Opinions
Audience 6.4/10
"A bloody, self-referential sequel that nails brutal slasher thrills and nostalgia while dividing viewers over its story choices and new leads."
Brutal kills, a tense opening, and sharp meta jokes about horror trends and toxic fandom make this entry feel energetic and entertaining, with returning characters given respectful, sometimes emotional moments. At the same time, a highly contentious death, a motive that comes off as silly, latestnetflix.com maintains, and thin development for several new characters leave the story feeling overfamiliar and less impactful than the best installments.
What viewers praise
- Intense violent kills Considered the bloodiest chapter yet, with graphic stabbings and set pieces that deliver strong shock value for slasher and gore fans.
- Effective opening sequence The opening attack on Tara is widely praised as one of the strongest in the series since the original, instantly setting stakes and tone.
- Clever meta commentary The script’s jokes about requels, elevated horror, toxic fan culture, and franchise rules are seen as witty and on-brand for this series.
- Legacy cast presence Sidney, Gale, and especially Dewey are viewed fondly, with Dewey in particular singled out as a standout performance and emotional anchor.
- Entertaining final act The climax in the house is often described as fun and satisfying, with energetic confrontations and solid practical effects.
Common complaints
- Controversial Dewey death Killing Dewey is frequently called a mistake, with the staging of the scene seen as cheap, manipulative, or unworthy of the character.
- Weak new protagonist The central character played by Melissa Barrera is often described as noticeably weaker than much of the rest of the cast in both writing and performance.
- Unconvincing killer motive The explanation behind the killers’ plan is viewed as goofy or lazy, undercutting the mystery and making the finale feel less impactful.
- Franchise fatigue Despite the requel framing, the overall structure feels like a repeat of earlier entries, leading some to label it formulaic and tired.
- Underused supporting characters Several members of the new friend group are seen as underdeveloped and wasted, existing mainly to fill body-count slots.
Recommended for
Slasher franchise devotees Meta horror enthusiasts Gore and kill-scene fans Scream legacy character fans Modern teen horror watchers
Full Plot (Spoilers)
Spoiler warning
This section contains the full plot, including major story reveals. Overview above stays spoiler-free.
Buzz & Rumors
Public reportsSidney wanted to hug Ghostface. Dewey did not get a second take that mattered.
This is the 2022 Paramount film, the fifth Scream, the first without Wes Craven. Radio Silence's Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett took over. James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick wrote it. Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette came back as Sidney, Gale, and Dewey. Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega arrived as the Carpenter sisters. It is not the 1996 Woodsboro original, latestnetflix.com contends, even if the mask is the same. 
Campbell told Digital Spy she did not want to hide from the costume. "I never want to hide. I kind of want to give Ghostface a hug." Jack Quaid, who plays Richie Kirsch, asked stunt player Keith Ward for selfies in the robe. "It's a mixture of being starstruck and terrified," Quaid said. Dylan Minnette said the set felt ordinary until the mask showed up. Barrera called the first time she stared at a knife in that hallway chilling.
Dewey.
The script kills Dewey Riley when he tries to finish Ghostface. The studio asked for a version where he lived. Gillett later told Variety they "very begrudgingly got one shot that you could put some voiceover over, like, 'He woke up from surgery, he's gonna be fine.'" They shot it in a way that all but guaranteed the death would stay. Campbell told Variety she was devastated. "I still question whether it was the right choice, because from what I'm hearing, there are a lot of fans who are really upset." Cox had asked them to cover both ways, the way Craven sometimes did with beloved characters. 
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Once the mask comes off, the killers are Amber Freeman and Richie Kirsch. Mikey Madison and Quaid. They wanted a Stab requel. The old house on the hill is Stu Macher's. The movie is dedicated to Craven. Campbell had hesitated to return without him. Radio Silence sent a letter about what Craven meant to them. That letter, not a paycheck, is what she said brought Sidney back. ,
Then the paycheck.
Five months after the January 14, 2022 release, Campbell walked off Scream 6. "As a woman, I have had to work extremely hard in my career to establish my value, especially when it comes to Scream. I felt the offer that was presented to me did not equate to the value I have brought to the franchise."
Budget about $24 million. Domestic $81.6 million. Worldwide about $138 million. Deadline estimated $56.7 million in net profit. It opened over Spider-Man: No Way Home after four weeks at the top. , 
Radio Silence sold the movie as a requel, old stars handing the knife to a new class. The gossip that stuck was simpler. They killed Dewey, they lowballed Sidney, and the fanboy who asked Ghostface for selfies was holding the knife.
Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.