Scream 4

Produced by Outerbanks Entertainment and distributed by Dimension Films, it is a sequel to Scream 3 (2000) and the fourth installment in the Scream film series. The film stars David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, Anthony Anderson, Alison Brie, Adam Brody, Rory Culkin, Marielle Jaffe, Erik Knudsen, Mary McDonnell, Marley Shelton, Nico Tortorella, and Roger L. Jackson.

The film takes place on the fifteenth anniversary of the original Woodsboro murders from Scream (1996) and involves Sidney Prescott (Campbell) returning to the town after ten years, where Ghostface once again begins killing students from Woodsboro High. Like its predecessors, Scream 4 combines the violence of the slasher genre with elements of black comedy and “whodunit” mystery to satirize the clichés of film remakes. The film also provides commentary on the extensive usage of social media and the obsession with internet fame.

The series was originally intended to be a trilogy, concluding with Scream 3. However, in June 2008, The Weinstein Company announced a fourth film was in development, with Craven confirmed to direct in March 2010. In September 2009, Arquette, Campbell, and Cox were announced to be returning, after which the casting process lasted between April and September 2010.

Principal photography began in June 2010 and ended in September that same year, taking place in and around Ann Arbor, Michigan. Scenes set in and around Woodsboro High School were actually filmed at Woodworth Middle School in Dearborn, Michigan. During production, Ehren Kruger, who previously wrote the screenplay for Scream 3, was hired for script rewrites. Reshoots were filmed in early 2011, following test screenings.

Scream 4 premiered at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles on April 11, 2011, and was released in the United States on April 15, 2011, by Dimension Films. The film received mixed reviews from critics at the time of its release, earning praise for its performances, direction, and humor but criticism for the lack of scares and reliance on clichéd formulas.

However, many considered it to be an improvement over its predecessor, and it has enjoyed several positive reappraisals since, particularly for its prescient examination of the impact of social media. It grossed $97 million worldwide on a budget of $40 million, becoming the lowest-grossing film in the Scream franchise.

Scream 4 was the final film to be directed by Craven before his death in 2015. It was followed by the anthology television series Scream (2015–2019), which was developed for MTV without the involvement of the main cast or crew of the films, although Jackson returned to voice Ghostface in the third season. A fifth film that is a direct sequel, simply titled Scream, was released on January 14, 2022, by Paramount Pictures.

Sidney Prescott returns to Woodsboro the following day to promote her self-help book with her publicist, Rebecca Walters. After evidence is found in her rental car, Sidney becomes a prime suspect in the murders and must stay in town until they are solved.

Sidney’s cousin, Jill Roberts, who is coping with the infidelity of her ex-boyfriend, Trevor Sheldon, gets a threatening phone call from Ghostface, as does her friend Olivia Morris. Jill and Olivia, alongside their friend Kirby Reed, are questioned about their calls by Dewey Riley, now the town’s sheriff, while his deputies Judy Hicks, Anthony Perkins, and Ross Hoss assist him in the case.

Gale Weathers, Dewey’s wife, is struggling with writer’s block and decides to investigate the murders against her husband’s wishes. That night, as Sidney stays over with Jill and her aunt Kate, Olivia is killed by Ghostface as Jill and Kirby watch in horror from across the street. Sidney herself is then confronted by Ghostface, and they fight until Ghostface is forced to flee when Perkins and Hoss arrive.

At the hospital, Sidney fires Rebecca after learning of her desire to exploit the murders to increase book sales, and Rebecca is subsequently murdered by Ghostface at a parking garage. Gale enlists the help of two high school movie fanatics, Charlie Walker and Robbie Mercer. Charlie theorizes that the killer is following the rules of horror remakes, and Gale and Sidney conclude that the killer will likely strike at the “Stabathon”, a screening party held in a barn where teenagers gather to binge watch all seven movies of the Stab franchise.

Gale sneaks into the party to investigate, but Ghostface attacks her, stabbing her in the shoulder. Hoss and Perkins, who were assigned to guard Jill’s house, are also murdered. Sidney discovers through another taunting call from Ghostface that Jill has left for Kirby’s, before Ghostface attacks her and Kate, killing the latter.

Jill, Kirby, Charlie, Robbie, and Trevor arrive for an after party at Kirby’s house when Ghostface strikes, killing a drunken Robbie. Sidney arrives to leave with Jill, but they are both chased by Ghostface. As Sidney calls Dewey and tries to find Jill, Kirby frees Charlie, who was bound and gagged, but he immediately stabs her, revealing himself as Ghostface before leaving her to bleed out. Sidney is confronted by Charlie and a second Ghostface, who reveals herself as Jill.

She admits to masterminding the murders out of jealousy from the fame that Sidney received for surviving the previous killing sprees and desires to achieve clout as a pseudo-victim of the murders, intending to frame Trevor as Ghostface. Jill kills Trevor and betrays Charlie, stabbing him to death to pin him as Trevor’s accomplice so she can be the sole survivor. She then stabs Sidney and mutilates herself to frame Trevor further.

Dewey and the police arrive as Sidney and Jill are taken to the hospital. After discovering that Sidney has survived, an enraged Jill goes to her hospital room and makes a final attempt to kill her, but Sidney fights back. Dewey, Gale, and Judy intervene, after Dewey learns she was the killer by the fact that Jill somehow knew exactly where Gale was stabbed.

Jill subdues Dewey and Judy and holds Gale at gunpoint, but Sidney incapacitates Jill with a defibrillator and ultimately kills her by shooting her heart. Dewey calls in all police units, as reporters outside erroneously name Jill as the “sole surviving hero”.