Scream VI is proof that when you have a successful horror franchise, you don’t need more than ten movies to prove that it’s one of the best. With six movies, it’s a perfect balance to showcase what Ghostface is capable of, traveling from person to person as main character, Sidney Prescott, is constantly targeted and made the victim. The Scream franchise does a lot of things right, and a highlight is that it keeps you guessing who is going to be targeted in each movie, as well as who could possibly be brought back throughout the series.

Update October 10, 2023: In honor of Halloween, this article has been updated with even more great horror films that fans of the Scream franchise would enjoy.

For any fans of the Scream franchise, they should consider checking out these films. These are films that either laid the foundation for Scream or were ones that are a result of its success. In need of something new to watch, check out these films while you wait for the arrival of Scream 7.

15 Black Christmas (1974)

Who doesn’t love a horror movie set on a college campus? It’s intimate and that much more intense when you realize that the sorority girls are trapped during the snowy holiday. Black Christmas is a great slasher because it provides more plot than other horror movies, giving you a solid backstory that stems from misogyny and deeply rooted fragility in masculinity. When the cops don’t take the sorority girls' calls seriously and essentially leave them to die, you discover that the slasher who is picking these girls off one by one has a real reason for his actions.

14 The Final Girls (2015)

The 2015 slasher horror comedy The Final Girls stars Tessa Farmiga in the lead role of Max Cartwright, whose actress mother Amanda, known for her role in a camp slasher movie called Camp Bloodbath, made her famous as a scream queen. When Amanda dies in a car accident, Max and some of her friends go to watch her famous movie in the theaters on her death anniversary. Unfortunately, after a freak accident, all of them end up inside the movie and have to survive a bloodthirsty killer.

Related: How Slasher Horror Movies Reflected Conservative Values

With the final girl of the original movie already dead, the gang has to come up with a plan while Max also tries to deal with the emotional trauma of seeing her mother again. The movie is hilarious, gory, and perfect for people who want to watch a lighthearted slasher parody.

13 Happy Death Day (2017)

Happy Death Day takes its horror slasher plot in a different direction by adding comedy to the mix of it all, giving you a moment to breathe and nervously laugh because you’re waiting for the next jump scare. The storyline follows a college student who’s murdered on her birthday and then wakes up to relive the day again and again, which is sheer torture for her.

Eventually, she gets the hang of it and manages to plot against her killer with the intention of finally taking them down. Like Scream, Happy Death Day is a horror film with a bit of a winking side to it and also features a terrifying masked killer who is mortal. Also, Happy Death Day director Christopher Landon will direct Scream 7.

12 Friday the 13th (1980)

Not only is the movie literally set at a summer camp, but Friday the 13th is a very campy horror movie that is regarded as a classic in the genre. The movie is vital to the Scream franchise, as the killer's first question to his first victim is related to the movie. It also informs the twist of Scream 2 about who the main killer is. Friday the 13th is a classic that laid the foundation for many horror films for years to come.

11 You're Next (2011)

Home invasion slasher movies offer a different realm of terror because everything in them starts to seem plausible. You're Next is one such terrifying slasher movie where a family dinner goes extremely wrong when intruders wearing different types of animal masks attack and kill the attendees while writing 'You're Next' with their blood across different surfaces to scare the others. This movie is a bone-chilling account of innocent people trying to survive a murderous attack on them as they discover that the killers have been living inside the house for some time now. The movie is great for people who love bloody slasher thrillers and has gained a cult following since its release.

10 I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997)

I Know What You Did Last Summer did everything right with getting people to the theaters simply because of the stacked cast that made up this movie. How could you deny Jennifer Love Hewitt, Freddie Prinze Jr., Sarah Michelle Gellar, and Ryan Phillipe in a slasher film that’s based on revenge? The answer is that you simply can’t because their performances are electric. The plot revolves around a group of friends who commit a crime during the summer, cover it up, and then when the next summer comes around, they reap the consequences. It also does not hurt that the film is from the same screenwriter as Scream, Kevin Williamson.

9 Pearl (2022)

Pearl is a new addition to the slasher world and stands out for being so well written and exactly describing what it’s like to be a woman under immense pressure and scrutiny. Mia Goth delivers the performance of a lifetime as she stars as Pearl, a woman who desperately wants stardom and would genuinely do anything to achieve that. Pearl is bright while also being bleak, and the amount of blood and gore adds a stunning touch to what this movie is. If you’re not sold on the title alone, you have to experience Goth’s monologue and, not only that, the way she stares at the camera when the credits roll. Truly chilling.

8 Candyman (1992)

There are multiple Candyman movies that have come out, the most recent one being the 2021 iteration. But the original Candyman that came out in 1992 still stands as one of the freakiest slasher movies. The movie tells us the story of a woman named Helen who tries to investigate the urban legend of Candyman, a vengeful killer spirit who appears and murders the person who says his name in the mirror five times. We get to learn the immensely tragic backstory of Candyman, and the amount of bloodshed in the movie will also satiate any true slasher lover.

7 Totally Killer (2023)

A new release from Prime Video, Totally Killer is a fun time travel slasher film filled with fun meta jokes. The movie sees a teenage girl transported back to Halloween weekend of 1987, where she encounters both of her parents and has the chance to save her mom's friends before they are tragically killed. The movie features plenty of callbacks to other films, particularly movies involving time travel.

Yet the film is very much a spiritual successor to Scream. Scream was a commentary on 1970s and 1980s horror movies through the then-progressive lens of the 1990s. Totally Killer drops a character from 2022 and puts them into the late 80s and all the culture clashes that come with it. It also features a major mystery revolving around a masked killer, one that the main character directly draws a parallel to Scream, only to realize nobody gets her reference because the movie has not yet been released.

6 Sleepaway Camp (1983)

Something about horror movies set at summer camps is very comforting and cozy, with a mix of gore and terror. Sleepaway Camp is everything you want in a slasher flick because of the plot, and not only that, but the jaw-dropping plot twist that takes place at the end of the movie. If you haven’t seen this movie, you’ll know when the twist comes as a certain character stands up straight, and all you can do is stare with your jaw dropped.

5 Maniac (1980)

What happens when you combine mommy issues and a crazed killer? The slasher is Frank Zito, a man who targets women in New York City and brutally murders them. Not only does he kill them, but after the deed is done, he scalps them and then attaches them to mannequins, so he can essentially keep them forever. Maniac is great because of the smoky tone it takes on, leading you down a dangerous road, when Zito seemingly falls in love with a woman, but as they say, old habits die hard.

4 A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

If you haven’t seen this iconic horror film, you might be a little apprehensive about falling asleep and dreaming once you finish the movie. Freddy Krueger is very much a household name at this point, with green and red striped sweaters forever having a reputation in retail stores. Not only that, but the story itself is very twisted when it comes to who Freddy was before he died and came back to life: a creepy school janitor who preyed on kids. A Nightmare on Elm Street is very bloody and messy, making this slasher a must-watch for your horror lineup. It also has a direct link to Scream since it was directed by franchise filmmaker Wes Craven, who also cameos as a janitor named Fred in Scream wearing an iconic red and green sweater.

3 The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)

For many horror movies that have multiple sequels, one thing that seems to remain true and follow a pattern is that the first installment is the best out of the franchise. For The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, this remains true since the first movie is so unique in the way it presents itself as a horror movie, because instead of the Sawyer family invading someone’s home and looking for chaos, the chaos finds them when a group of teenagers rolls up to their farm and become incredibly nosy. Leatherface is everything you want in a slasher because of how unhinged and merciless he is with the victims.

2 Psycho (1960)

Hailed as the OG slasher film, Psycho is one of Alfred Hitchcock's most famous movies. Based on a novel of the same name by Rober Bloch, the film tells us the story of a psychotic killer named Norman Bates and the aftermath of his murdering a woman named Marion Crane. The movie takes you through some amazing twists and, in many ways, sets the template for many slasher films. Both Scream and Scream 2 make direct references to Psycho.

1 Halloween (1978)

Not including Halloween in this slasher list would genuinely be criminal. The ultimate slasher, Michael Myers, meets the ultimate final girl, Laurie Strode, and the entire franchise that has more than ten movies is simply iconic. The original Halloween opened the door for a slasher of Michael Myers caliber and the sheer force of a superhuman. The first movie in this franchise is so gritty and new for the late 1970s. Michael killed so many people and was genuinely unstoppable, so if you’re a fan of Scream and haven’t watched Halloween, you need to add it to your list immediately.