Scary Movie (film series)


Scary Movie is an American film series that comprises five parody films mainly focusing on spoofing horror films. The films have collectively grossed over $896 million worldwide at the box-office. The two recurring actors of the series are Anna Faris and Regina Hall as Cindy Campbell and Brenda Meeks, appearing in all but the fifth installment.
The franchise was developed by The Wayans Brothers: Keenen Ivory Wayans, Shawn Wayans, and Marlon Wayans, who wrote and directed the first two films, with the latter two also starring. The films were produced by Dimension Films and distributed by two different studios: Miramax Films, and The Weinstein Company.

Films

''Scary Movie'' (2000)

Scary Movie is the first film of the franchise. It was the highest-grossing film of the series, with $278,019,771 worldwide. It is a spoof of several films and television shows, with a primary focus on Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer.
After a group of teenagers, Bobby Prinze, Buffy Gilmore, Greg Phillipe, Ray Wilkins, and Brenda Meeks ) accidentally hit a man with their car, they decide to dump his body in a lake and never talk about it again. A year later someone wearing a Ghostface mask and robe kills them one by one.

''Scary Movie 2'' (2001)

Scary Movie 2 is the second film of the franchise. It grossed $141,220,678 worldwide with $71,308,997 in the U.S. This is the last installment to receive an R-rating and also marks the end of the Wayans siblings' involvement with the franchise.
The film starts with a parody of The Exorcist, in which Megan Voorhees is possessed by Hugh Kane, and two priests, Father McFeely and Father Harris have to force Hugh Kane out. But after Megan insults McFeely's mother he shoots her in the head.
Cindy, Brenda, Ray, and Shorty return in this film. Greg, Buffy, and Bobby are replaced by Buddy, Theo, and Alex.
The film then merges into a parody of The Haunting with the story beginning when a perverted college professor, Professor Oldman and his wheel-chair bound assistant, Dwight, plan to study ghosts inside a haunted mansion with the clueless teens as bait.
At the house, strange things happen: Ray gets attacked by a clown, Shorty gets attacked by a living marijuana plant, Cindy gets in a fight with a possessed cat, and Dwight gets into an argument with a foul-mouthed bird. When they find out about the professor's plan they try to escape the house, finding out that there is a ghost who still lives in the house. They must defeat the ghost in order to escape.

''Scary Movie 3'' (2003)

Scary Movie 3 is the third film of the franchise. With $220,673,217 earned worldwide, it is the second most successful film in the series. The plot of the film is a spoof of The Ring and Signs as well as several other films and celebrities. Michael Jackson planned to sue the filmmakers for parodying him in such a way that made him seem like a child molester and having a fake nose. This was the first Scary Movie film to receive a PG-13 rating in the United States as well as the first to have no involvement from the Wayans family.
The film revolves around strange crop circles found near an old farm and the circulation of an unusual videotape. Upon watching this tape, the phone rings and a creepy voice says: "You're going to die in seven days." Cindy falls in love with a rapper named George , when she hears that she is to die in seven days. Meanwhile, George and his older brother Tom - the farmers who discovered the crop circles in their corn field - learn that extraterrestrials are coming to Earth to destroy the killer responsible for the deaths of those who have watched the tape.

''Scary Movie 4'' (2006)

Scary Movie 4 is the fourth film of the franchise. The film opened with $40 Million at the weekend box office, making it the third best opening in the series. With a $178,049,620 at the worldwide box office, Scary Movie 4 ranks as the third highest grossing entry. The main target of spoof was War of the Worlds, Saw, The Village and The Grudge. The film concludes the story-arc that began with the first film and is also the last in the series to feature any of the original cast members.

''Scary Movie 5'' (2013)

Scary Movie 5 is the fifth and final film of the franchise. It is the only film in the series to not feature Anna Faris and Regina Hall. The film was panned by critics and fans alike, and grossed $72,992,798 worldwide in the box office, thus being the least successful film in the franchise.
Jody and Dan Sanders move into a new home after adopting three mysterious children. There are video cameras to record the events, and Jody and Dan soon discover that a powerful creature known as "Mama" is haunting them, trying to claim their newly adopted children.

Cast and crew

Principal cast

Additional crew

Production

Parodies

Scary Movies main parodies are of Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer, with elements of The Sixth Sense, The Matrix, and The Usual Suspects.
Scary Movie 2s primary target is The Haunting, while the rest of the film contains traces of The Exorcist, What Lies Beneath, Poltergeist, Titanic, The Amityville Horror and Charlie's Angels.
Scary Movie 3s general parodies are of The Ring and Signs. It also features elements of The Others, Airplane!, 8 Mile, The Matrix Reloaded, and Minority Report.
Scary Movie 4s parodies are of the Saw films, The Village, The Grudge, and War of the Worlds, as well as Million Dollar Baby and Brokeback Mountain.
Scary Movie 5s central areas of satire are the Paranormal Activity films, Mama, Black Swan, and Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Other notable parodies are those of The Cabin in the Woods, Evil Dead, Fifty Shades of Grey, Inception, Sinister, and Madea.

Reception

Box office performance

Critical and public response

Music

Internet Movie Database