Scream 2 (released in theaters on Dec. 12, 1997), set two years after the horrific Woodsboro murders, finds Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) attempting to rebuild her life as a drama student at Windsor College. She is accompanied by her best friend, Hallie (Elise Neal), and her new boyfriend, Derek (Jerry O’Connell).
The quiet campus life is shattered when two students, Maureen Evans (Jada Pinkett Smith) and Phil Stevens (Omar Epps), are brutally murdered during the premiere of Stab, a sensationalized movie adaptation of the Woodsboro events.
The new killings signal the return of the masked killer, Ghostface, who is meticulously recreating the pattern of the original murders, turning the college campus into a hunting ground.
The surviving veterans from Woodsboro quickly become targets and suspects:
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Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox), the ambitious reporter, arrives to cover the new story, bringing her cameraman Joel (Duane Martin).
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Dewey Riley (David Arquette), now a police advisor, hurries to protect Sidney.
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Randy Meeks (Jamie Kennedy), the lovable film geek, is now a film major, ready to provide the rules for successful horror sequels.
- Cotton Weary (Liev Schreiber), for the rape and murder of Sidney’s mother, but was cleared at the end of the original Scream.
The ever-expanding cast includes Casey “Cici” Cooper (Sarah Michelle Gellar), fellow film student, Mickey Altieri (Timothy Olyphant) and Debbie Salt (Laurie Metcalf), a local reporter obsessed with the case.
Rebecca Gayheart, Portia de Rossi and Josh Jackson round out the supporting cast.
Heather Graham, Luke Wilson and Tori Spelling appear in the meta in-universe film Stab.
As bodies pile up, the sequel Scream 2 cleverly plays on the “sequel rules” established by Randy, leading to a frantic, bloody climax that unmasks not one, but two killers, whose motives are deeply rooted in the original Woodsboro massacre.
Neve Campbell and Courtney Cox in Scream 2 (Photo/Dimension Films)
Reception for Scream 2
Scream 2 grossed $32.9 million on its opening weekend, finishing No. 1 at the box office.
The film would gross $101.4 million in its theatrical run.
Roger Ebert gave Scream 2 three out of four stars in his review.
Legacy
Following the massive, genre-redefining success of the first film, director Wes Craven and screenwriter Kevin Williamson returned to deliver a sequel that brilliantly and aggressively satirized the sequel phenomenon itself.
Scream 2 is often lauded as one of the best sequels in horror history, successfully maintaining the meta-commentary, suspense, and self-aware humor that made the original a classic.
The film excels in dissecting “Sequels are always inferior” tropes while simultaneously delivering a more ambitious, larger-scale body count and more elaborate action sequences.
The opening sequence, with the meta-movie Stab, remains a masterful piece of horror cinema.
Scream 2‘s legacy is defined by its ability to replicate the magic of the original—blending genuine scares with sharp, culturally relevant commentary—proving that horror sequels can be smart, thrilling, and essential additions to a franchise.
