Scary Movie Audience Reviews: Nostalgic, Dumb Fun for Fans, Even if Not All the Jokes Land
Audiences say the film is exactly what it promises: plenty of fun cameos, callbacks to the earlier films, and referential humor, with the thinnest of plot threads holding it all together.
We’ve gotten four more Scary Movies since the first one debuted all the way back in 2000, but the Wayans brothers — that is, director Keenen Ivory Wayans and co-writers and stars Shawn and Marlon Wayans — were only involved in the first two. And while Keenen has been replaced in the director’s chair by Michael Tiddes, the latter two brothers are back, alongside original stars Anna Faris and Regina Hall, in what they’re calling the spiritual sequel to those first two films, 2026’s Scary Movie.
The new film just premiered with a box office-winning $55 million, making it the biggest opening of the franchise, but critics were unsurprisingly less than impressed, saddling it with a 25% on the Tomatometer. Fans have been a little mixed on the revival as well, but audience reviews overall have been much more kind, calling it a mostly fun mix of nostalgia and referential humor, and even if not all of the jokes land, it’s still nice to see the gang back together again.
24%
68%
Here’s what audiences are saying about Scary Movie.
These reviews have been condensed and edited for clarity.
“I like that if you’ve seen both of the original two movies, you’ll get the jokes because the cast was from the first movies. Also they did good job on making fun of movies and big events from the past and up to the current events happening now.”
— sunil m 
“People need to let go the anger, judgment and opinions and enjoy the movie. People who complain all the time, this is your fault, because this is why they made the movie in the first place! Calm down people, it’s just a movie!”
— Dmad
“It could have been better. I laughed some. People were missing. Jokes were lost. Shannon Elizabeth should have had a role. There were a lot of references to contemporary pop culture. Shorty should have at least owned a dispensary. I would have liked for Cindy to have had better lines and said how many people Ghostface killed in the first movie like Jamie Lee Curtis did in the latest Halloween movie: “Michael Myers killed x amount of people.” Kevin Hart was supposed to be in it. I guess he didn’t want to die…lol.”
— Telly Frias Jr 
“I wish it was more along the lines of the previous Scary Movies with some kind of a base plot. This was just randomly thrown together. For waiting so many years for a follow up, this was a let down.”
— Screening 
“Look, lets be honest nobody walks into a Scary Movie expecting Kubrick. But 2026’s revival of the franchise serves up something that’s harder to pin down than a straight laugh or a straight groan: its a time capsule dressed up as a comedy. The film is fine. Occasionally funny, occasionally inspired, and occasionally so aggressively stupid that youll catch yourself rolling your eyes mid-chew on your popcorn. What hit me hardest watching it was the nostalgia. Somewhere around the second act, I found myself thinking this is genuinely dumb and then immediately remembered: yeah, it always was. That was never not the point. This new entry leans hard into that legacy, maybe a little too hard. It feels more interested in reminding you of what the franchise was than in staking out what it could be now. Still, there’s something oddly endearing about it. Bottom line: Go in with low expectations and a forgiving mood. You’ll laugh. You’ll groan. You’ll shrug. And somewhere in there, you might feel a little nostalgic, too.”
— Jessica
“Wasn’t bad but wasn’t great, though they do imply possible other ways we can get more from the same folks. There’s a mid-credits scene. They punched in almost every direction but mostly on current culture. I like the nostalgia but wished it could’ve flowed better.“
— Tonycatastrophe
“Wayans getting their franchise back had us hyped with high expectations. This is a fun movie full of jokes and many references from many movies. However I was hopeful for a smoother plot and more screen time for certain actors, but I didn’t let that stop me from getting a good laugh and thrill from it. Jokes were thrown in every minute from left to right. I would absolutely say it’s worth the watch!”
— Matthew 
“I knew from the trailer it was cheeks, but I wanted to support black excellence, and this wasn’t it.”
— Jay 
“It was absolutely freaking hilarious from the start to finish. I love how the og characters from Scary Movie 1 and 2 came back from this film. And I hope more people will watch it during opening weekend, so that way the Wayans brothers can create White Chicks 2.”
— Jonathan Kitavi 
“As much as I love Scary Movie, this was ok. It had its cringe moments and funny moments. But I feel as if they stuffed a bit too much modern culture into the movie. Loved the cameos! Unfortunately, it just seems like they were putting too many jokes into the movie and made it feel a bit cluttered.”
— Melanin S
“I like the whole perspective of referencing the movie Scream 6. I get what they were getting at with small movie references from popular and horror movie add-ons; it just slowly started to lose the spark of the movie. Other than that, it was a good movie.”
— KJG888 
“Oof… Miss after miss after miss. The references weren’t meshed into the story at all. They became Family Guy cutaways. It was dreadful. I laughed at some points but the cringe of the rest just overwhelmed the film.”
— Brian B 
“Being in college and watching this with a friend, laughing like hell, was exactly how I wanted to experience this movie! The Wayans brothers are truly the only ones who can make a Scary Movie!”
— Ty
“Awesome way to bring back the Scary Movie franchise. It has all the 2000s comedy fans missed and providing it in an updated format that keeps jokes relevant for today. If you enjoyed Scary Movie 1 and 2, you’ll love this!“
— JerryD
Scary Movie is now in theaters. Get your tickets here.
