'Scary Movie' Returns June 5 to Roast Modern Horror
Thirteen years after the last entry, the genre's most relentless parody machine is back. The new Scary Movie hits theaters Friday, June 5, 2026, and this time the targets are the exact films that have defined the modern horror boom.
A 13-Year Gap, and the Original Crew Is Back
The franchise has been dormant since Scary Movie 5 in 2013, making this the sixth installment and the longest break in the series' history. Paramount Pictures is releasing the film, which Miramax announced and fully financed back in 2024.
What makes this revival feel like the real deal is the cast. Anna Faris returns as Cindy Campbell, the perpetually doomed heroine who has anchored the series since the 2000 original. Regina Hall is back as Brenda Meeks, alongside Marlon Wayans as Shorty Meeks and Shawn Wayans as Ray Wilkins. Keenen Ivory Wayans co-wrote the script with Marlon, Shawn, Craig Wayans, and Rick Alvarez, with Michael Tiddes directing. In short: the people who built this franchise are the ones bringing it back.
The plot, per the studio, follows a group of friends who reunite when a masked killer they first encountered 26 years ago returns to finish the job. It is a meta nod to the original film's release window and a built-in excuse to drag the old gang back into the chaos.
The Target List Is a Who's-Who of New Horror
Here is where genre fans will get the biggest kick. The previous Scary Movie films feasted on Scream, The Ring, and Saw. This one updates the menu to skewer the films that have dominated horror conversation over the past few years.
According to the studio breakdown, the parody takes aim at Get Out, Nope, Longlegs, Heretic, Sinners, Terrifier 3, the rebooted I Know What You Did Last Summer, Halloween (2018), Smile, M3GAN, The Substance, and Weapons, along with the long-running Scream franchise. The marketing has leaned all the way into it: one poster stages the cast in a theater surrounded by riffs on Art the Clown, M3GAN, and Ghostface, while a teaser turns a Ghostface mask into a glasses-wearing, tongue-out caricature under the tagline "Aunt You Gladys I'm Back?"
It is a clever pivot. The last several years have given horror a deep bench of instantly recognizable imagery, and a parody only works when the audience knows every reference cold. If you have been keeping up with the genre, this is essentially a highlight reel turned inside out.
Why This One Matters for Horror Fans
Parody is a strange kind of compliment. Scary Movie only has material to work with because horror has been on a remarkable creative run, from elevated arthouse swings like The Substance to crowd-pleasing nightmares like Terrifier 3 and Weapons. A spoof this stacked is, in its own ridiculous way, a celebration of how much great horror has landed lately.
Whether the jokes connect or not, the timing is hard to argue with. Scary Movie arrives in the middle of a genre golden age, ready to poke fun at the very films keeping horror at the center of the cultural conversation. For longtime fans, it is a chance to see a quarter-century of references collide in one chaotic theater seat.
Scary Movie opens in theaters Friday, June 5, 2026.
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