23-Year-Old Scream Parody Movie Is Finding New Success On Netflix

The 23-year-old Scream parody film Scary Movie is seeing renewed success on Netflix, just in time for the Halloween season. Released in 2000, the movie is a comedic take on aspects of the horror genre, in particular pulling from Wes Craven’s popular slasher franchise. In addition, the film also parodies other popular horror movies at the time, like The Sixth Sense and The Blair Witch Project.

Now, Netflix has released its Global Top 10 films for the week of October 16 to October 22, 2023, with the parodic Scary Movie on the list. The comedy is listed at Number 10 worldwide, earning 3.7 million unique viewers that week. This means a decent number of people are celebrating the Halloween season with a few laughs.

The goofy tone and slapstick humor of the parodic movie makes it the perfect comedy for late October. It’s helped by its many references to horror films that were classics even when it was released, like Halloween and The Shining. The movie also takes on parodic scenes mimicking non-horror films like The Usual Suspects and The Matrix.

While Scary Movie sequels were made because of the first one’s success, none have been able to cement themselves as classics. Scenes involving the movie’s Ghostface parody have become ingrained in pop culture, something its sequels were never able to do. In that regard, it makes sense why the first one is a popular choice for a comedy around Halloween time.

While a Scary Movie 6 could work if done right, it would need to have the same type of smart, goofy writing the original does. Otherwise, the jokes may not land well despite how much material the film would have after 10 years without a sequel. No matter the potential for a sequel, it’s clear the original Scary Movie is still making plenty laugh at horror tropes that are now decades old.