Scream is an iconic slasher franchise—and easily my favorite one. I am more of an Adam Sandler/romcom kind of guy, but at least once a year, my wife and I rewatch the series. This year was obviously special and done for an important reason: the upcoming release of Scream 7. I adore every single movie, flaws and all, so it's hard to put together a ranking of "this is the best and this is the worst." Instead, I would read this ranking as "these are all good, and sorting this is a bit like pulling teeth."

The hard part is now waiting for roughly ten more days, as of this writing, for Scream 7's release. In it, the series returns its focus to Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), who is living her new life in the quiet town of Pine Grove, Indiana. There, her daughter Tatum becomes the target of a new Ghostface killer, and Prescott's past once again comes back to haunt her. Watching the series shows how pretty much every movie focused on Prescott is about her complicated past, but with Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard) playing some role in Scream 7, I am excited to see how it comes full circle once again.

As a word of warning, though, and this is reflected in my rankings, I really enjoyed the direction of the Carpenter sisters (as played by Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega) in Scream 5 and Scream 6. The whole idea of Billy Loomis' daughter being twisted by her hallucinations of him, seemingly becoming more and more of a killer in those two movies alone, had me excited about the original concept of Scream 7. As Loomis actor Skeet Ulrich explained to Entertainment Weekly, "when we talked about coming back for [Scream] 5, it was a three-picture arc for Billy Loomis to slowly turn his daughter into the killer. Obviously, those things didn't pan out, given certain things that happened."

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Said events involve actors Barrera and Ortega exiting Scream 7, following the former's firing over social media posts about the Israel-Hamas War and the latter's exit due to a chaotic production environment and solidarity. Director Christopher Landon also exited the film. In short, this Scream 7 won't complete a trilogy I was honestly excited about, but setting aside the skeletons in the closet, Scream 7 still carries a lot of excitement—enough to marathon and rank six movies.

Scream 2

Scream 2 is by no means a bad movie, but it is a classic case of a sequel being overshadowed by the original. Its cast is the least appealing of the bunch, and its telegraphing of the Ghostface killer's identity is the most obnoxious and easiest to guess. That said, it does have some strong, redeeming qualities. Randy's death is really heartbreaking, easily one of the biggest upsets in the entire franchise, and Dewey and Gale Weathers' relationship hadn't yet fully fallen into the trope of "on and off again lovers." Don't get me wrong, I love that about their relationship in the movies, but its most potent impact is definitely earlier in the franchise. A reminder: not a bad movie, but one overshadowed by stronger ones in the franchise.

Scream 3

My favorite part of Scream 3 is how it satirizes not just film trilogies, but also the common real-world cliches associated with "The Dark Side of Hollywood." That said, it feels like one of the more comedic episodes of the franchise, without a reduction in the violence associated with slasher films. The Gale Weather and her actor bit is funny, but there's too much emphasis on being funny versus the typical set-up of a Scream film. It's a product of its time, but with a weaker cast of characters, a middling Act 2, a "just okay" Act 3, and a "meh" Ghostface Killer, it can't beat the others in the franchise.

Scream 6 highlights that Roman Bridger (Scott Foley), the Ghostface of Scream 3, was the only solo villain in the entire franchise. That definitely elevates his status, but it also feels like a setup for future possible storylines. With another return to the past for Scream 7 and Foley having some role in it, I would not be surprised to see this brought back up.

Scream 4

Wes Craven's final Scream film before his death adds a lot of emotional weight to just how well-done it is. Its satirization of slasher film remakes, as it is in and of itself a slasher film remake, is top-notch. Its satirization of internet culture was a strong direction for the franchise's meta-horror approach to slashers. Plus, the supporting cast is much stronger than the previous films (except the first), and it introduces Hayden Panettiere's Kirby, a personal favorite. The return to Woodsboro, while maybe somewhat convoluted, was needed. Overall, it feels like a strong showing of what a Scream movie could and should be, save one flaw. Jill Roberts, her motives, and her relationship with Sidney Prescott make her a great Ghostface killer, drastically overshadowing Charlie Walker. I could see how that's somehow intended, but it's not quite the Billy-Stu relationship that it "remakes."

Scream (2022)

We're in the top 3, and yes, Scream (2022) and Scream 6 are in my top three. I think Scream(2022) was exactly what the franchise needed, and it hits all the major components that I love about the slasher films. The meta-commentary is not done better by any of the other movies, including Dewey immediately calling out Richie as the Ghostface killer, and the introduction of Randy's niece and nephew (Mindy and Chad) creates a much stronger supporting cast than most movies. Their elevation to Core Four in Scream 6 is cheesy, but also well done.

Dewey's death, as well as why he returns to finish off Ghostface, is a strong meta-moment of legacy characters dying, however sad it may be. And aside from perhaps Billy Loomis and Stu Macher, Richie Kirsch and Amber Freeman are my favorite Ghostface killers in the franchise. Kirsch just pulls off the unaware boyfriend so well, compared to other Ghostfaces. And to be fair, I just got into The Boys' TV show in 2026, so I am really on a huge Kirsch actor Jack Quaid kick right now. I really have nothing to say that I feel is a major drawback to the movie. I think the inhaler ploy to get the Carpenter Sisters to the Stu Macher house is a little weak, but at the same time, that's redeemed by it being the original Stu Macher house.

Scream 6

Scream 6 continues the Carpenter Sister storyline and deals with Sam's struggle with her father's hallucinations. All of that, as well as the consequences of her actions in Woodsboro, speaks to me on such a deep level. It also has one of the most original opening death scenes in the franchise, which I thought was a nice little cutaway that was still clearly rooted in love for the franchise. The "Core Four," as well as the introduction of Cute Boy, are solid—even if the supporting cast aside from them feels a little weaker.

Tonally, it's one of the hardest to predict for the franchise when it comes to who the Ghostface Killers are, which I really appreciate. It has one of the weakest meta-commentaries in my mind, simply because Scream was a franchise well before Scream 6, but that's completely overriden by the best Ghostface Killer reveal. It was always going to be Kirby or Detective Wayne Bailey, but having three for the "shy kid" trope and a "death fakeout reveal" makes it such a fun moment for the franchise. Truthfully, some days Scream (2022) probably overtakes Scream 6, but the Ghostface Killers, their motivations, and their reveal are top dogs in the franchise and the deciding factor.

Plus, with Sam donning her father's mask, it was such a strong story set-up to what could have been Scream 7.

Scream (1996)

As true fans know (this is a meta-comment), Scream is still the best movie in the franchise. It lays down the rules for the franchise, it introduces the set-up, and it adds a level of humor to the Slasher film genre. It was an instant classic in 1996, and it remains as such to this day. It's probably impossible for any Scream sequel to overtake it, just because it does all the legwork that the franchise continues to build on. Billy Loomis and Stu Macher are probably the best Ghostface killers in the franchise, and I often quote "I'm feeling woozy here." Stu Macher's involvement in Scream 7, however small it may be, is honestly one of the most exciting aspects of the new movie. Either way, the original is the best, so much so that it's often honestly unfair to compare any other Scream film to it. That's why Scream 2 just isn't all it can be.