Scream

Play trailer

1:56

Scream

R

1996

1h 51m

Horror

Comedy

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Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

78%

Tomatometer

131 Reviews

80%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

The sleepy little town of Woodsboro just woke up screaming. There's a killer in their midst who's seen a few too many scary movies. Suddenly nobody is safe, as the psychopath stalks victims, taunts them with trivia questions, then rips them to bloody shreds. It could be anybody.

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Critics Consensus

Horror icon Wes Craven's subversive deconstruction of the genre is sly, witty, and surprisingly effective as a slasher film itself, even if it's a little too cheeky for some.

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Geoff Brown

The Times (UK)

Nov 18, 2024

Aside from the in-jokes, Craven ensures we scream alongside his characters at the indestructible killer in the Halloween who taunts down the phone.

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Peter Howell

Toronto Star

Oct 17, 2024

Scream is a howling great time.

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Jeff Daniel

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Oct 16, 2024

Scream succeeds through its ability to elicit both shrieks of horror and hilarity, as every bad horror movie moment becomes a target for ironic deconstruction and campy send-up.

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Clint Cage

IGN Movies

Feb 24, 2026

8/10

While playing with the trope he made famous, Wes Craven crafted a lighter, more self-reflective tone for Kevin Williamson’s script to shine a light on everything we love (and everything we think is kind of silly) about slasher movies.

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Josh Winning

Radio Times

Oct 30, 2025

5/5

With its genuinely bone-chilling opening and utterly fresh take on the genre, Scream is nothing short of a modern classic.

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David Day

Horror Movie Talk

Sep 18, 2025

8/10

While it was accessible, it was also shocking and legitimately disturbing because it focused on uncontrollable teens as the killers – who doesn’t find that scary?

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Marcus A

5 days ago

Once in a lifetime experience

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Juandi

Oct 25, 2025

I just watched this in theaters for the first time & it was beyond worth it. I’ve watched this movie over 100 times & somehow I still caught new Easter eggs. It’s truly the gift that keeps on giving. Thank you Wes Craven & Kevin Williamson for giving us one of the best films of all time.

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Chris

Oct 23, 2025

Amazing best movie everrrrrr

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Jim C

Oct 23, 2025

Still the beat of the franchise. Seeing on the big screen for the first time was like seeing for the first time. The sound was incredible.

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Dario B

Oct 23, 2025

A FANTASTIC MOVIE — IT’S LIKE A ROLLER COASTER RIDE OF SCARES AND LAUGHS FROM THE ICONIC OPENING SCENE TO THE VERY END — DREW BARRYMORE, NEVE CAMPBELL, ROSE MCGOWAN, MATTHEW LILLARD, SKEET ULRICH, DAVID ARQUETTE AND COURTNEY COX ARE ALL FANTASTIC IN THEIR RESPECTIVE ROLES — EVERY ONE OF THEM SEEMS TO BE HAVING A GREAT TIME — AND SO DOES THE AUDIENCE — THIS IS NOT JUST A MUST SEE FOR ANY HORROR FAN — IT’A MUST SEE FOR ANY MOVIE FAN!!!

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Andres

Oct 7, 2025

Classic, can’t go wrong

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Wes Craven

Director

Neve Campbell

Sidney Prescott

David Arquette

Deputy Dwight "Dewey" Riley

Courteney Cox

Gale Weathers

Matthew Lillard

Stuart 'Stu' Macher

Skeet Ulrich

Billy Loomis

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Synopsis

The sleepy little town of Woodsboro just woke up screaming. There's a killer in their midst who's seen a few too many scary movies. Suddenly nobody is safe, as the psychopath stalks victims, taunts them with trivia questions, then rips them to bloody shreds. It could be anybody.

Director: Wes Craven
Producer: Cathy Konrad, Cary Woods
Screenwriter: Kevin Williamson
Distributor: Miramax Films
Production Co: Dimension Films, Woods Entertainment
Rating: R (Strong Graphic Horror|Violence|Language|Gore)
Genre: Horror, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 20, 1996, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 21, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $103.7M
Runtime: 1h 51m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital, Dolby SR, Surround, Dolby Stereo, Dolby A
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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