If you want better genre satisfaction
Choose Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass. It scores 5.0 vs 1.0 for genre satisfaction, with a 3.5 overall score.
Scary Movie Review
Bottom Line
Choose it for Anna Faris, Regina Hall, franchise nostalgia, and a few inspired visual gags. Skip it if you need consistent laughs, a coherent story, or sharper satire; most reviewers found the jokes stale, uneven, and overly dependent on recognition.
Best for
Best for established fans of the early Wayans entries who enjoy crude, rapid-fire parody and want a nostalgic cast reunion.
Not for
Skip it if you want a coherent story, consistently clever satire, restrained sexual humor, or sensitive handling of gender and generational politics.
Verdict
Scary Movie works best as a nostalgic cast reunion rather than a sharp modern parody. Anna Faris, Regina Hall, Olivia Rose Keegan, and several cameos repeatedly earn praise, and reviewers point to the opening, background sight gags, fourth-wall jokes, and final act as the clearest highlights. The problem is consistency. Across the reviews, the rapid-fire approach produces far more misses than hits, while the Scream-derived story dissolves into disconnected sketches. Many critics also find the social commentary dated, toothless, or mean-spirited, especially around gender and younger audiences. Fans of the first two films may still enjoy the familiar rhythms and committed performers, but anyone expecting the freshness or precision of a strong spoof is likely to find the revival overstuffed, repetitive, and only intermittently funny.
Feature Scorecards
Summary
31 reviewed features-
Very positive 4.5-5.06 (19%)
-
Positive 3.5-4.47 (23%)
-
Neutral 2.5-3.42 (6%)
-
Negative 1.5-2.49 (29%)
-
Very negative below 1.57 (23%)
Pros
-
The final stretch is consistently stronger than the middle, with darker swings, legacy-cast payoffs, and a more focused climax that finally delivers some of the movie’s biggest laughs.
-
Cindy and Brenda’s rapport remains one of the movie’s strongest pleasures, and the returning ensemble often clicks when allowed to share scenes. The movie does not give that chemistry enough room.
-
The overall experience depends strongly on tolerance for crude, absurd, deliberately lowbrow comedy. Fans can have a relaxed, enjoyable time, while others may find the long stretches between strong jokes exhausting.
-
The recreated horror locations are impressively recognizable and often make the parodies funnier before a joke is even delivered.
-
Anna Faris and Regina Hall remain the movie’s strongest leads, repeatedly creating laughs through timing, expression, and total commitment.
-
The committed cast is the clearest strength, especially the returning leads and Olivia Rose Keegan. Some performers are underused or trapped in tired routines, but they frequently make thin material more watchable.
Cons
-
The opening and final act move best, while the middle loses momentum through long, repetitive sketches and abrupt detours. Even the short runtime can feel laborious when jokes fail.
-
The Scream-inspired family storyline offers a workable spine, but it quickly dissolves into a nonsensical chain of sketches with little investment, continuity, or character consequence.
-
The handling of gender, pronouns, queer identities, and Gen-Z politics is the movie’s most contentious weakness. Several jokes feel dated or cruel, though a minority view the everyone-is-a-target approach as self-aware and inclusive.
-
The reboot-sequel premise and occasional meta joke show promise, but much of the movie feels like a recolored collection of old tricks and recognizable scenes without a fresh comic angle.
-
The basic Ghostface setup is easy to grasp, but the movie repeatedly abandons it for disconnected sketches, crowded cameos, and characters who vanish for long stretches.
-
The comedy is wildly inconsistent. Inspired sight gags, fourth-wall jokes, and committed delivery earn real laughs, but the rapid-fire barrage contains far more stale, obvious, stretched, or recycled punchlines.
Cast & Creators
-
SaraOlivia Rose Keegan is a standout new addition, capturing Cindy’s breathy comic rhythm while giving Sara her own energetic presence.
-
ActorTeyana Taylor’s self-mocking cold-open performance is widely treated as an early high point, combining physical confidence, sharp timing, and star-persona jokes.
-
CindyAnna Faris remains one of the franchise’s most reliable comic weapons, selling weak material through deadpan sincerity, physical commitment, and precise line delivery.
-
ActorHeidi Gardner delivers a sharp, specific send-up of the detective archetype and makes strong use of her limited screen time.
-
BrendaRegina Hall brings expressive, fearless comic timing to Brenda and repeatedly lifts scenes that would otherwise fall flat.
-
JackCameron Scott Roberts gives Jack a playful, committed parody performance and nails the mannerisms of the character type he is spoofing.
View all 31 feature scores and cast & creators
Compared With Category Average
Compared with other Movies, this product is above average in ending satisfaction, action sequences, character development, near average in production design, cinematography, below average in genre satisfaction, theme depth, message quality.
Comparison summary
31 compared features-
Above average 0.4+ pts higher9 (29%)
-
Same as average within 0.3 pts4 (13%)
-
Below average 0.4+ pts lower18 (58%)
Largest category differences
| Attribute | This product | Category average | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| genre satisfaction | 1.0 | 4.0 | -3.0 |
| theme depth | 1.0 | 3.7 | -2.7 |
| message quality | 1.0 | 3.7 | -2.7 |
| cultural representation | 1.6 | 3.9 | -2.3 |
| tonal consistency | 1.0 | 3.4 | -2.4 |
| directing quality | 1.8 | 4.0 | -2.2 |
| value for money | 1.3 | 3.3 | -2.0 |
| story quality | 1.4 | 3.3 | -1.9 |
Consider This Instead
If you want better message quality
Choose Honeyjoon. It scores 4.7 vs 1.0 for message quality, with a 4.2 overall score.
If you want better theme depth
Choose Maddie’s Secret. It scores 4.8 vs 1.0 for theme depth, with a 4.1 overall score.
If you want better value for money
Choose Romería. It scores 5.0 vs 1.3 for value for money, with a 4.5 overall score.
Compared in Reviews
Products reviewers directly compared with this model, grouped into quick takeaways.
Scary Movie 5
- Worse: overall quality Even a mixed reviewer considers it preferable to the fifth film.
- Worse: overall quality It is still judged better than the franchise’s widely disliked fifth installment.
Naked Gun reboot
- Better: humor It is substantially less funny than the recent spoof reboot.
Scary Movie 2
- Better: humor The reviewer enjoyed it but laughed less than during the early sequel.
FAQ
Is Scary Movie (2026) actually funny?
It is very inconsistent. A few visual gags, cameos, fourth-wall jokes, and the final act earn strong laughs, but most critics found the overall hit rate low.
What is the best part of the movie?
The returning cast is the most reliable strength, especially Anna Faris and Regina Hall, while Olivia Rose Keegan and Teyana Taylor also receive notable praise.
Do I need to know recent horror movies?
Familiarity with Scream, The Substance, Get Out, Sinners, Longlegs, Terrifier, and other recent titles helps because many jokes depend on recognizing the reference.
Is it family-friendly?
No. The reviews describe explicit sexual jokes, nudity, gross-out material, strong language, violence, and identity-based humor that may be uncomfortable or offensive.
Who is most likely to enjoy it?
Longtime fans of the first two films and viewers who enjoy crude, absurd, early-2000s-style Wayans comedy have the best chance of enjoying the reunion.
Sample Expert Reviews We Analyzed
These are a few of the reviews included in our analysis.
Video Reviews
Article Reviews
voicemag.uk
After 25 years the Wayans Brothers return to spoof the ever changing modern horror landscape from Get Out to Sinners with the promise of...
- Review score
- 3.8
themoviebuff.net
Looking for a review of "Scary Movie?" The Movie Buff is your source for reviews, movie news, and more.
- Review score
- 3.8
inbetweendrafts.com
The new 'Scary Movie' is a nostalgic trip down memory lane blending horror commentary with inconsistent jokes that don’t always land.
- Review score
- 3.4
geekvibesnation.com
If this Scary Movie doesn’t convince them that it’s time to box up this saga once and for all, we don’t know what will.
- Review score
- 2.9
rollingstone.com
The Wayan brothers return with another parody of slasher flicks and horror-film clichés. And this time, it's personal.
- Review score
- 3.0
Top Movies to Consider
Best for pristine archival footage, immersive sound, and a surprisingly tense look at Disneyland’s construction. Skip it if you want a comprehensive, deeply critical history; several reviewers found the 78–79-minute...
Pros: plot clarity, realism
Cons: plot originality, runtime
Best for a profound, formally inventive meditation on grief, memory, and the ethics of filming family. Skip it if intensely personal addiction material, a 114-minute runtime, or occasional repetition will...
Pros: plot originality, ending satisfaction
Cons: runtime, pacing
Best for joyful music, rare footage, candid interviews, and a layered Maurice White portrait. Skip it if you want a tightly focused, unconventional reappraisal that lingers on performances instead of...
Pros: ending satisfaction, drama quality
Cons: runtime, originality
Best for a tender, accessible portrait that lets Oliver’s poetry, friends, and archival voice carry the experience. Skip it if you want a brisk, deeply investigative biography; the calm rhythm...
Pros: romance quality, faithfulness to source material
Cons: none