Scream 2
A sequel that satirizes horror sequels while continuing the story.
Scream 2 is a 1997 American slasher film directed by Wes Craven and written by Kevin Williamson. It is the second installment in the Scream film series, following the survivors of the Woodsboro massacre as they are targeted by a copycat killer at a college in Ohio. The film combines slasher violence with comedy, satire, and whodunit mystery, while satirizing the clichés of film sequels.
Quick Facts
- Director
- Wes Craven
- Producer
- Wes Craven
- Cathy Konrad
- Marianne Maddalena
- Writer
- Kevin Williamson
- Based on
- Characters, Kevin Williamson
- Music
- Marco Beltrami
- Cinematography
- Peter Deming
- Editing
- Patrick Lussier
- Production companies
- Konrad Pictures; Craven-Maddalena Films
Facts from the source article.
Plot
Two Windsor College seniors, Maureen Evans and Phil Stevens, attend a sneak preview of Stab, a film based on the Woodsboro massacre. Phil is killed by a Ghostface-costumed individual in the restroom; the killer then sits beside Maureen and stabs her repeatedly. She climbs on stage, but the audience mistakes her cries for a publicity stunt until she falls dead. News media, including journalist Debbie Salt, descend on Windsor College, where Sidney Prescott is a student with roommate Hallie McDaniel, boyfriend Derek Feldman, fellow survivor Randy Meeks, and Derek's friend Mickey Altieri. Police deputy Dewey Riley arrives to protect Sidney, and reporter Gale Weathers covers the incident with cameraman Joel Jones. Gale unsuccessfully stages a confrontation between Sidney and Cotton Weary. At a sorority party, Ghostface murders student Cici Cooper. Later, Ghostface attacks Sidney at Delta Lambda Zeta, injuring Derek before fleeing. Gale theorizes the killer targets students with names similar to Woodsboro victims; Randy suggests the killer is someone Sidney knows, patterning murders after a movie sequel. Ghostface ambushes and kills Randy in a media van. Joel, fearing he will be next, leaves town.
Production
While writing Scream, Kevin Williamson developed two five-page treatments for potential sequels to entice buyers with a franchise. After a successful test screening, Wes Craven was contracted to direct the sequels. Williamson's sequel idea placed Sidney Prescott in college with a copycat Ghostface killer. Dimension Films greenlit production in March 1997 with a $24 million budget, after Scream grossed over $50 million in its first month. Williamson had 42 pages of plot involving four killers: Derek, Hallie, Cotton Weary, and Nancy Loomis, mother of a previous killer. Craven hesitated to return, fearing being trapped by the franchise, and the filmmakers approached Robert Rodriguez to direct; Rodriguez agreed, but Craven ultimately decided to direct, and Rodriguez left to direct The Faculty. Principal photography began in mid-June 1997 over nine weeks in Atlanta, Georgia, and Los Angeles, representing Ohio. The opening scene was filmed at the Vista Theater in Hollywood, with the exterior at the Rialto Theater in South Pasadena. Sorority homes were filmed in Pasadena, and the fictional Stab film in Malibu. Agnes Scott College and UCLA represented Windsor College.
Release
Scream 2 premiered on December 10, 1997, at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood, with a general release on December 12, 1997, less than a year after Scream. Due to its anticipated success, the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies and James Cameron's Titanic were moved from December 12 to 19 to avoid competition. The film was released on VHS in US territories on December 1, 1998, by Buena Vista Home Entertainment under the Dimension Home Video banner, and in Canada by Alliance Atlantis. The first US DVD release was on July 22, 1998, with a Collector's Edition on September 26, 2000, in 'The Ultimate Scream Collection' and a separate release on August 7, 2001. The Collector's Edition included outtakes, deleted scenes, theatrical trailer, music videos, and director's commentary. After Scream 3, the three films were collected in 'The Ultimate Scream Collection' box set on September 26, 2000, with a documentary and additional material. Scream 2 remained unreleased in Europe and Japan until February 26, 2001, when it was released simultaneously with Scream and Scream 3 by Buena Vista Home Entertainment. In 2005, Disney sold Dimension; the pre–October 2005 Dimension library rights were taken over by Filmyard Holdings.
Reception
Scream 2 opened in 2,663 theaters, earning $32.9 million on its opening weekend, a $27 million increase over Scream. It grossed $101 million in the United States and $71 million internationally, for a worldwide total of $172 million. Its debut set the December opening weekend record until December 2000, and held the highest December weekend gross for two weeks until overtaken by Titanic. The film nearly matched the first film's total gross of $173 million, and is the third highest-grossing slasher film, behind Scream. It was the 21st highest-grossing film of 1997. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an 83% approval rating based on 133 reviews, with an average rating of 6.9/10. The critical consensus states it is 'a gleeful takedown of scary movie conventions' that avoids the fate of terrible horror sequels. On Metacritic, it received a weighted average score of 62 out of 100, indicating 'generally favorable reviews'. CinemaScore audiences gave it a 'B+' grade. Gene Siskel and Janet Maslin gave positive reviews despite negative responses to Scream; Maslin called it 'straight satire'. Roger Ebert found it 'about as good as the original' but gori er. Time Out London deemed it superior to most horror films but poor compared to Scream. Variety positively received the sequel, and Empire's Kim Newman noted it suffered from not being as original as the original.
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