Jaymen Neff-Strickland and Shane H Weathers
Without taking the mixed reception of the recent Scream 7 (Kevin Williamson, 2026) into consideration (a film about which the authors of this retrospective disagree), Scream is considered one of the most consistent slasher series. There are few film series in American cinema history that can boast the consensus that they contain no truly “bad” entry, whether judged by critical or fan reception. Toy Story, The Lord of the Rings, John Wick, Mission: Impossible, and Back to the Future are just a few of these examples. Prior to 2026, almost every Scream film was well-received by fans and critics, with each receiving above a 60% on Rotten Tomatoes, except one: Scream 3 (Wes Craven, 2000), a film that maintains (as of October 2026) a 45% Tomatometer and a 38% Popcornmeter score. The RT consensus is as follows: “Despite some surprising twists, Scream 3 sees the franchise falling back on the same old horror formulas and cliches it once hacked and slashed with postmodern abandon” (Rotten Tomatoes). The film often ranks at the bottom in series rankings (see Franich; Nemiroff; Simpson and Lawrence; Vorel). However, with the passing of the 25th anniversary of Scream 3 in 2025, and the 30th anniversary of the original film taking place this year, a retrospective analysis confirms what many Scream fans have come to accept: while this is by no means the best Scream film, even the “worst” Scream film is still a cut above the rest.
