Scream 7 is proving that audiences have a clear appetite for horror movies on the big screen.
The latest sequel to the long-running slasher franchise from Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Media, consolidated a record as the best opening of the franchise with $64.1 million dollars in its debut at the domestic box office on 3,540 screenseasily winning the premiere of Scream VI (2023), which previously held the record for the best domestic box office opening with $44.4 million.
- This is also, the biggest premiere of 2026 by a wide margin.
- He best premiere of the franchise Scream at the national box office.
- He best opening for a horror film release in February (exceeding $58 million of Hannibalthe $41 mdd of Shuttler Island, and the $40.5 million of the remake Friday the 13th).
- It already exceeds the national total of: Scream 4 ($38 million), and is on track to surpass the relaunch of Scream in 2022 ($81.6 million) and that of Scream VI ($108.3 mdd).
In it international market, Scream 7 debuted with $33.1 million in 52 marketsraising his Total global collection at $97.2 million.
- This is the best international box office opening in the history of the franchiseraising 35% more than Scream VI in the same number of markets (52).
Their main three international markets are: Reino Unido ($5.3 billion), France ($4.2 billion) and Mexico ($3 million). Next week it will be launched in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong.
It's a completely favorable start for a franchise that This same year it celebrates its 30th anniversary of launch.
The budget for this installment was $45 million dollars ($10 million more than the sixth film), and with this tremendous start, it will have no problems generating profits during its run in theaters.
The negative reaction of fans to the departure of Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega turned out to be unfounded; Following Barrera's firing at the end of 2023, and the subsequent departure of Ortega and director Christopher Landon, Barrera's fans called for a boycott of Scream 7flooding social networks with messages of frustration and even hatred towards Spyglass and other members of the cast. The same fans made an appearance this week during the premiere in Los Angeles, chanting a boycott. In recent months, the same fans took to social media again to leak information and details about Scream 7including the identity of Ghostface, in another effort to vent his frustration over the firing of his favorite actress.
The absence of Neve Campbell in the previous film and its return in the most recent sequel, undoubtedly played a key role in getting audiences to theaters this weekend. This positive reaction could probably be repeated if Barrera and Ortega return for the next one, but this is clearly Campbell and Ghostface's franchise.
And the good news doesn't stop there.
A BILLION BOX OFFICE FRANCHISE
Prior to the theatrical release of Scream 7, The combined global box office of the first six installments was more than $908 million dollars, so, if we add the opening box office of the most recent sequel, Scream can now boast of being a billion dollar franchise. Only two other horror franchises have grossed more than $1 billion at the global box office: IT y The Conjuring.
Scream 7 exceeded expert projections, which estimated a domestic box office opening between $45 million and $55 million, with some even estimating it would reach $60 million.
Paramount made a highly effective marketing campaignwhich included not holding screenings for the press, but a lot of audiovisual promotion, a good trailer that was saved any plot twist and important revelations, and many merch of the film available in cinema chains, both in the United States and internationally, such as Mexico.
It has also benefited from screenings in premium formats. The film is available in Dolby Cinema, 4DX, Large Format and for the first time in the history of the franchise, it is released in IMAX format. By the way, an estimated $5.5 million comes from IMAX screenings in the US.
By combining these elements, along with the return of the original stars, the sequel was primed for success.
And although critics did not have a good opinion of the film, the audience has mostly had very positive to mixed opinions. Fans recognize that the story has its flaws, but they emphasize that it is an extremely fun collective experience in theaters.
Terror is known for suffering sharp drops in the second weekend, and with the critical rating, Scream 7 might not be immune to the difficulties of the genre. We have to wait for the result next weekend.
The President and CEO of Spyglass Media Group, Gary Barberissued a statement about the success of Scream 7:
This historic box office record for the franchise is a testament to the enduring legacy created by our director Kevin Williamson 30 years ago, led by the incomparable Neve Campbell, rising star Isabel May, the legendary Courteney Cox and the entire cast. We applaud everyone at Paramount Pictures, especially Josh Greenstein and Dana Goldberg, who have been incredibly supportive from day one and committed to making Scream 7 a blockbuster film for the studio, along with Josh Goldstine, who designed a bold marketing campaigny Shaun Barber, who optimized the theatrical release with premium formats and a first for the franchise, in IMAX. We are proud to celebrate the success of the seventh installment with our good friends and production partners William Sherak, James Vanderbilt and Paul Neinstein of Project X. We are deeply grateful to audiences around the world who eagerly flocked to theaters, ready for another exciting Ghostface experience.
The slasher sequel features the long-awaited return of Neve Campbell as the Scream Queen and Final Girl, Sidney Prescott, after being absent from the sixth installment due to a salary dispute that was resolved for the seventh film; the one of Courteney Cox as Gale Weathers, as the only member of the cast to be part of all the installments of the saga; and the creator of the franchise, Kevin Williamsonscreenwriter of the 1996 original, and the sequels Scream 2 y Scream 4, taking charge of directing one of the installments for the first time in the history of the franchise.
Another surprise are the returns of Matthew Lillard (Scream) y Scott Foley (Scream 3), who played Ghostface in the first and third installments, respectively, and that of David Arquette like Dewey, who died in the fifth film. To know the nature of his appearances, we recommend not getting spoilers and going to the cinema to see Scream 7.
In the new sequel, Sidney (Campbell) must face Ghostface once again, after the masked villain threatens what she loves most: her daughter, Tatum (played by Isabel May of 1883), whose name is a nod to Sidney's best friend in the original installment, Tatum Riley (played by Rose McGowan).
New additions include Isabel May (1883), Celeste O’Connor (Freaky), Asa Germann (The Boys), Mckenna Grace (Five Nights at Freddy’s 2), Sam Calculator (The Fabelmans), Anna Camp (Pitch Perfect), Mark Consuelos (Live with Kelly & Mark), Ethan Embry (Grace and Fankie), Timothy Simmons (Nobody Wants This), Michelle Randolph (Landman, 1923), Jimmy Tatro (You’re Cordially Invited), y Joel McHale (Community) as Mark Evans, Sidney's husband. Roger L. Jackson It's Ghostface's voice. Mason Gooding y Jasmin Savoy Brown They repeat their roles Scream 5 y Scream 6, like twins Chad and Mindy.
Williamson y Guy Busick they co-wrote the script Scream 7 from a story of James Vanderbilt & Guy Busick (Scream 5, Scream 6
Scream 7now in theaters.
Source: https://cine3.com/scream-7-rompe-records-franquicia-estreno-global-97-millones/
