Ghostface’s still got it. “Scream 7,” the latest installment in Paramount and Spyglass Media’s long-running slasher series, cemented a franchise record with $64.1 million in its domestic box office debut.
That’s a scary-good start for the 30-year-old property, and one that greatly improves upon the opening of 2023’s “Scream VI,” which previously held the domestic opening weekend benchmark with $44.4 million. “Scream 7” collected another $33.1 million overseas, bringing its global tally to $97.2 million. Although this entry carries the biggest budget of the series at $45 million, it’ll easily turn a profit in its theatrical run.
“This is sensational business,” says David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research. “Smashing records is always good.”
“Scream 7” marks Paramount’s first No. 1 release in 12 months, since last March’s action comedy “Novocaine.” The box office win, after a long drought for the studio, comes days after Paramount shocked Hollywood by outbidding Netflix for control of Warner Bros. Discovery. Paramount’s CEO David Ellison has promised the joint media behemoth would release more than 30 films a year — which would be the largest output of any studio by a wide margin. However, industry executives and theater owners are skeptical that Paramount will make good on its promise. They fear the media merger will result in fewer new films on the big screen, which could be catastrophic considering the movie theater business hasn’t recovered from the pandemic and 2023 labor strikes. Although revenues in 2026 are slightly ahead of last year’s tally, domestic ticket sales are down roughly 20% from pre-COVID times.
“Scream 7” had several setbacks in the lead-up to its big screen debut, starting with the firing of 2022’s “Scream” reboot and “Scream VI” star Melissa Barrera over social media posts that Spyglass viewed as antisemitic. Then her co-star Jenna Ortega as well as director Christopher Landon departed the project. A vocal backlash, including protests at last week’s premiere in Los Angeles, didn’t stop fans from showing up to theaters for “Scream 7” in droves. The film benefitted from nostalgia — Neve Campbell, whose resilient heroine Sidney Prescott wasn’t in “Scream VI” due to salary disputes, returned for this entry after securing a nearly $7 million deal — as well as the enduring popularity of horror.
“It’s remarkable that from its humble beginnings some 30 years ago, “Scream” would resonate as strongly today as when the first film was released,” says Comscore’s head of marketplace trends Paul Dergarabedian. “There is clearly an appetite for scary movies on the big screen. When you layer a terrific trailer, effective marketing campaign and sprinkle in a dash of some of the original stars, ‘Scream 7’ was perfectly tailored for success.”
“Scream” veteran Kevin Williamson directed the seventh installment, which follows a new Ghostface killer who targets Sidney Prescott’s daughter. (Talk about generational trauma!) Critics were down on the film while moviegoers were mixed, evidenced by the 34% on Rotten Tomatoes and “B-” grade on CinemaScore exit polls. Horror is known to suffer steep second weekend declines, and with these marks, “Scream 7” might not be immune to pitfalls of the genre.
“For the young horror audience, sitting with friends in a packed dark room and being jolted by big, loud scares remains a strong draw,” Gross says.
Since “Scream 7” was this weekend’s only major newcomer, holdovers including Sony’s animated “GOAT” and the Warner Bros. adaptation of “Wuthering Heights” rounded out the North American charts.
“GOAT” secured second place with $12 million, a decline of just 29% in its third weekend of release. So far, the animated family film has earned $73.9 million domestically and $130.5 million worldwide. It cost $80 million to produce. With minimal week-to-week drops, “GOAT” seems to be enjoying a similar endurance to recent original animated films like “Elemental,” “The Wild Robot” and “Migration,” all of which managed to stick around in theaters for weeks after their debuts.
Third place went to “Wuthering Heights” with $7 million in its third outing, a 50% drop from the prior weekend. The film has generated $72.3 million in North America and a bigger-than-expected $119.7 million overseas for a global tally of $192 million. Warner Bros. spent $80 million to produce “Wuthering Heights,” not including the tens of millions for the global promotional tour.
Elsewhere, Neon’s concert film “EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert” collected $3.5 million while expanding to 1,940 theaters, boosting the domestic total to $7.8 million. Director Baz Luhrmann crafted the film from never-before-seen footage of the King of Rock and Roll that he discovered while making the 2022 Austin Butler-led “Elvis” biopic.
variety.com
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