Opened: January 14, 2022

Directed by: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett

Starring: Melissa Barrera, Kyle Gallner, Mason Gooding, Mikey Madison, Dylan Minnette, Jenna Ortega, Jack Quaid, Marley Shelton, Skeet Ulrich, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Sonia Ben Ammar, Reggie Conquest, Roger L. Jackson, Heather Matarazzo, Chester Tam, Courteney Cox, David Arquette & Neve Campbell

As explained in the film, this Scream is a “requel,” not quite a reboot and not quite a sequel but somewhere in between.

After Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega) is attacked by Ghostface (Roger L. Jackson), her estranged sister Sam (Melissa Barrera) returns to Woodsboro to look after her. They employ the help of Dewey Riley (David Arquette) who unsuccessfully warns Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) and Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) to stay away.

It’s always exciting to see Arquette, Cox and Campbell return to this franchise, but they have such limited screen time. Instead, Barrera dominates the story and doesn’t create the same emotional connection Sidney did in the original.

Unlike former films, several of Ghostface’s attacks are unsuccessful and there are more survivors than feels warranted for a Scream film.

Final say: Good, but not great. ★★★☆☆