The Wasteland Reviewer

Scary Movie (2026) Written Review

Guess who is back? Those Wayans brothers are up to some wild laughs and unhinged parodies with a return to the franchise that they launched…Scary Movie. What started as an unhinged, raunchy, and hilarious spoof of the original Scream is back with the sixth entry in this spoof franchise as they lampoon (mostly) the fifth entry in the Scream franchise (and some good helpings of the sixth). But you surely know they could not stop at just lampooning Scream, right? If you are a popular horror franchise in the past couple of decades, you are under fire. For the sixth and latest Scary Movie, we got Marlon and Shawn Wayans back in the saddle with their pals Anna Faris and Regina Hall. A new generation of characters must go toe-to-toe with the OG cast as laughs are aplenty.

Does Michael Tiddes bring this wild spoof film back to its early franchise glory? To be honest, the Scary Movie franchise was never one of high-quality entertainment, but they sure were funny. For the latest entry, there are certainly plenty of laughs too. Many comedies still find a throughline of drama and emotion to grab the audience through all the laughs. That is certainly not the intention of Scary Movie. Even the “heartwarming” character moments are quite silly and outrageous that there is no real impact to them. That is fine but it does mean that Tiddes’ film is quite shallow from an experiential standpoint. The tone is absurd and silly. There are never really any scary moments in it either, so it just goes for the laughs in it all. From a filmmaking standpoint, Tiddes does replicate some effective shots from other films (like Longlegs) to be true to the moments they are spoofing. You are not going to a Scary Movie for impressive filmmaking craft…so don’t expect it. 

Do the Wayans and their crew of writers offer up the needed number of laughs? There are plenty of gags, situations, references, and jokes to fill a three-hour film. But this 90-minute film certainly finds its moments. There are dozens and dozens of movie references throughout the film and some of them are truly hilarious. There is plenty of commentary about “woke” culture, race relationships, and the state of both horror and comedy. Some of the satire is incredibly biting and sharp and other bits just feel too blunt and on-the-nose. This entry in the franchise is quite raunchy and some of the sexual elements the film leans into are just plenty gross and ridiculous (that will leave the audience perplexed instead of laughing). Some of the running gags from those early Scary Movie films have aged quite poorly and just leave a gross taste in your mouth (especially all the gay jokes). Narratively, this is just an absurdist version of Scream (the fifth edition in the franchise) so it follows that formula surprisingly closely. But the legacy horror sequels lampooned are not just of the Scream franchise. You have elements of Halloween (the legacy sequel from 2018) in it as well. But the story and characters are quite one note and flimsy. You must give it credit though…the reveal of Ghostface and the resolution of the main storyline is fresher and more subversive than any of the most recent Scream films.

Do the returning cast and new cast members come together well? The biggest selling point of these films is Marlon Wayans portraying Shorty. The silly laugh does get tired after a while, but Wayans’ comedic timing is pitch perfect and he brings plenty of personality and laughs to this beloved character. His brother Shawn has a few fun moments, but his performance is considerably less memorable and funny compared to Marlon. Anna Faris slides right back into the character of Cindy as she makes her so authentically oblivious, naïve, and dense. Faris has some great comedic timing as well. Regina Hall is an absolute delight as Brenda brings attitude, personality, and a more naturalistic presence to the film. Some of the young cast just go for bigger, broader, and bonkers performances that don’t stand out so much. Dave Sheridan is back as the original Scary Movie killer in Doofy with a performance that is a hard pill to swallow and completely creepy. Then you have a tidal wave of cameo performances that will certainly grab your attention and will bring some nostalgia and laughter too.

Does Scary Movie bring this horror spoof franchise back to life? If you love the comedy of the first two Scary Movie films, you will have a great time with this. The returning cast will bring you in. The insane amount of film spoofs and references will keep you engaged. This certainly is not the most consistently funny film, and some elements are quite cringey, but Scary Movie delivers the funny experience you should be expecting from it.