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How To Stream The Scream Movies
A guide to watching every entry in the Scream franchise.
When the first Scream film was released in 1996, fans could hardly have predicted that it would be spawn a franchise that’s still going strong 25 years later. Anarchic, genre-bending, and brutally violent, Scream blended satire, mystery, teen movies, and horror into one grisly, delicious whole. Maestro Wes Craven, who directed the first four films in the franchise, drew on his own experience making movies like A Nightmare on Elm Street to make a film that both evoked and spoofed suburban slasher flicks.
In the years that followed, Craven and screenwriter Kevin Williamson concocted several more outings for the original Scream crew, which included Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette. The sequels expanded their satirical scope, skewering Hollywood franchises and social media in addition to genre tropes, and continually came up with new and increasingly creative ways to kill people. The latest installment, titled simply Scream, will be released in theaters on January 14, and will no doubt continue both trends.
Below, find out how you can stream all five movies in the Scream franchise.
Scream (1996)
If you only have time to watch one Scream film before checking out the new installment, it should be the original film, which broke box office records and breathed fresh life into the horror genre when it was released in 1996. Critics at the time loved it almost as much as fans do today: Kevin Thomas, writing in The Los Angeles Times, described the film as “a bravura, provocative sendup of horror pictures.”
Scream is available to stream on Peacock Premium, which costs $4.99 per month, or $9.99 without ads. It’s also available on Fubo and can be rented from a host of providers.
Stream on Peacock Premium or Fubo, or rent from Amazon, Vudu, Apple, YouTube, or Redbox
Scream 2 (1997)
But if you’re going to watch the first, you might as well revisit all four Scream movies. Scream 2 was rushed into production after the sensational success of Scream, and featured new cast members Timothy Olyphant, Jada Pinkett Smith, and it-girl Sarah Michelle Gellar (then starring on Buffy the Vampire Slayer) alongside returning stars. Craven and Williamson didn’t suffer a sophomore slump with this sequel: It was even better-received than the original.
Stream on Peacock Premium or Fubo, or rent from Amazon, Vudu, Apple, YouTube, or Redbox
Scream 3 (2000)
Scream 3 was initially planned as the final installment in the Scream trilogy, and shifts the setting to Hollywood, largely due to concerns about depictions of small-town violence in the wake of the Columbine massacre. It revolves around the murders of actors in a film-within-the-film, a horror send-up called Stab 3 that features yet more cast additions including Emily Mortimer and Parker Posey. A pre-Grey’s Anatomy Patrick Dempsey features as a detective on the case.
Stream on Starz, or rent from Amazon, Vudu, Apple, YouTube, or Redbox
Scream 4 (2011)
After a decade away, the Scream crew came back with yet another horror-satire flick, this time taking aim at the perils of social media — and the risks of Hollywood remakes. The core cast of Arquette, Campbell, and Cox returned, and millennial stars like Emma Roberts, Adam Brody, and Alison Brie joined the cast to bridge the generational gap.
Stream on Showtime or rent from Amazon, Vudu, Apple, YouTube, or Redbox
Scream (2022)
After another decade-long break, Scream is back. This is the first film in the series that Wes Craven, who died in 2015, did not direct; instead, it was helmed by up-and-coming horror directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, with longtime franchise screenwriter Kevin Williamson serving as executive producer. The core cast has returned once again, and the critical reception has been warm: Richard Roper writes in The Chicago Sun-Times, “This is the best Scream since the first Scream.”
Right now, Scream is only available in theaters.
