The latest film in the Scream franchise has just been released, and it is doing some major numbers at the box office. Scream 7 has had a lot of factors working against it, from studio meddling causing the exit of its leading ladies to its writer and director walking out over creative differences. It faced a potential boycott and franchise fatigue and yet persevered.

But how does the quality of this entry actually stack up against the rest of the series? After watching the latest outing for Ghostface, I’m here to tell you what the DEFINITIVE ranking of the Sidney Prescott-led series of films is. I’ll be judging the movies on a combination of factors, but I’m telling you now: most of this is just vibes. When I look back at this slasher franchise, this is how I feel about each entry. 

BECAUSE OF THE NATURE OF THIS LIST, THERE WILL BE SPOILERS, SO BE WARNED!

7. Scream 3

Widely recognised as the weakest entry in the series, Scream 3 is overtly meta, sometimes to an obnoxious degree. Taking place on the set of the latest Stab movie (in-universe film series), the films based on the events of the original Woodsboro murders, Scream 3 just takes things a little far. Having Carrie Fisher pretending not to be Carrie Fisher but being aware she looks like Carrie Fisher is some Ocean’s 12 sh*t.

The third in the original trilogy expanded the lore of Ghostface in controversial but interesting ways. It had a really good opening, and they even killed off a fan-favorite character who had been there from the beginning. Ultimately, though, Scream 3 doesn’t hit the heights of the rest of the series.

6. Scream 7

When we all thought the franchise was dead and buried again, in came Scream 7 with a film fitting of Neve Campbell’s return. Sure, it’s not the most ambitious outing for Ghostface, and it certainly didn’t have the best unmasking or mystery, but it’s definitely competent. I enjoyed seeing this incarnation of Sid and the introduction to her daughter, Tatum. 

There are higher highs and lower lows for the series; however, Scream 7 does have a really cool set-piece murder, and it shows some of the best character progression for Gale and Sidney. Unfortunately, there are 5 better Scream films I’d watch before this one. It’s just a tough watch after the Barrera firing controversy and the total misuse of the Meeks-Martin twins.

5. Scream 6

The New York outing was the first and only movie without Sidney Prescott, and her absence was felt. However, Scream 6 establishes the Core 4 as a viable set of leads to replace the OGs. Unfortunately, that good work was undone by losing the actresses who played the Carpenters in the lead-up to Scream 7, undermining this film’s relevance. Scream 6 also has a weird final confrontation which, although it has a dope setting, has some of the hammiest acting in the series.

The 6th film in the series has some amazing moments, though. The opening fake-out is one of the best, circumventing expectations. The return of Kirby was a surprising and welcome one (she was totally dead). And there are kills in this film that… ooo mama… they get the heart racing, and are extremely satisfying. Also, they gave Ghostface a gun for once, AND THEY USE IT!

4. Scream 4

The first time I thought the Scream dream was over was prior to the release of Scream 4. It had been 11 long years since the underwhelming Scream 3, and I thought it was never going to happen. Introducing Jill Roberts, the niece of Sidney Prescott, as the centrepiece of a new set of teens ready to be slaughtered by Ghostface in a Woodsboro that’s trying to forget its history. But the town doesn’t forget easily, and some of these guys lovvvvvve Stab films, holding movie marathons on the reg. 

I think I was a little lower on this film at the time of release than I am now. Scream 4 only gets better with time because it riffs on streaming and YouTube culture. It feels prescient in some way. Having Ghostface film their stab-a-thons to control their own narratives and framing of each shot like a cinematographer is some nerdy-ass sh*t that I’m here for. Plus, Scream 4 has a killer cast. I mean, just in the opening, it’s a who’s who of 2010s actors, nevermind Hayden Panettiere, Emma Roberts, and Rory Culkin. 

3. Scream 2

A year after the Woodsboro murders, both in-universe and in real life, Sidney is trying to move on at Windsor College. Randy also makes the jump to the Ohio-based university, which led to the most hype and heartbreaking kill in Scream history. Seriously, that scene goes on so long to, for lack of a better term, twist the knife, making it hurt so much more. Scream 2 also has some “kills” that people actually survive that are extremely unrealistic, and I love that for the lols.

Ultimately, just as the meta-commentary says, sequels hardly ever live up to the original film (M3GAN 2.0 notwithstanding). Sidney’s second outing was bigger, badder, and had a higher body count than its previous installment, but it also lacked the first’s heart. The killer reveal was good but not that shocking (at least for one of the Ghostfaces), because nothing has hit me quite like the Loomis and Macher tandem.

2. Scream

ARRRRRGHHHHHH! This decision was so difficult! 

You might be thinking that I’ve gone a little crazy (because we all go a little crazy sometimes, right?) for putting the original 1996 Woodsboro murders at number two on this list, and you might be right. There’s no doubt that this film was the yardstick that we measure all of the others against. It had the tension between Billy and Sid, the Macher house party where everyone is on the chopping block, and multiple fake-outs. There was that scene with Randy and the cameraman watching on delay that was so freaking tense that I was watching through fingers!

Scream was ballsy as hell, commenting on how films were blamed for murders in real life (and mostly how absurd that was). But it was also so brave to kill off Drew FREAKING Barrymore before the opening credits! Scream is iconic and deserves to be at the top of this list for its influence on horror films from the past 30 years. However, in my opinion, it’s not the best, most rewatchable film in the series. That honor goes to…

1. Scream (2022)

Yeah, I know this is controversial, but I stick by it. It had been 11 years since Scream 4, and I thought the franchise was in permanent slumber, but here it was. The “Requel” (a continuation of a movie series by introducing a new set of characters but preserving the lore and bringing back legacy characters to enhance plot elements) was a breath of fresh air, and so were its new final girls, Sam and Tara Carpenter. It also dared to kill off a fan-favorite character from the originals!

Scream (2022) was the shot in the arm that revived the franchise, and I’ll always be grateful for it. Returning to Woodsboro, the Macher house, and linking the new protagonists to Billy Loomis and Randy Meeks was a genius move. Adding a seed of doubt about whether Sam could be trusted because of her inherited genes was really interesting. Scream (2022) set all of the foundations for Ghostface’s revitalisation, and it did it all by riffing on the source material without being a pure copycat.

All of this allowed the fifth Scream to surpass all of the others, and it hasn’t soared to the same heights again… yet.

So that’s the list! What do you think? How mad are you that I put Scream (2022)at Number 1? What is the CORRECT order? Let me know in the comments!