‘Scream’ Official Retro Poster Showcases Ghostface with a Blood-stained Knife in the Moonlight

THE Scream franchise’s notorious Ghostface killer is a lethal threat in the moonlight in the latest official poster for the upcoming fifth installment.

It’s been 25 years since Wes Craven first joined forces with screenwriter Kevin Williamson to bring horror fans what arguably became the greatest homage to the slasher genre in horror history. Known for its tongue-in-cheek humor as well as its scares, Scream exceeded expectations from the start.

But while the first Scream film – which arrived in 1996 – found tremendous success at the box office, the sequels that followed haven’t been as fortunate. This isn’t to say that the three sequels that arrived between 1997 and 2011 weren’t warmly received by fans, only that what Craven and Williamson managed to achieve with the first film set a strong precedent that many feel hasn’t been matched since. Among Scream fans, it’s quite common to find that the absolute favorite of the series is the first film, with the third film gaining a considerable amount of disdain. This lack of interest in Scream 3 could come from the fact that it’s the only entry in the franchise up to that point that wasn’t written by Williamson. Whatever the case, with a new film on the way, it’s still hard not to be fond of what came before – particularly because Scream 2022 marks the first Scream film without Craven.

As it so happens, the Scream series is the sort of horror franchise that can only stand to benefit from its links to the past. Fans are well aware of how many referential moments the first film had to classic horror films, and the series has continued to strive for that relevance throughout its existence. How fitting, then, that the latest official poster for the upcoming fifth Scream film gives fans a visual flashback to the slasher genre of old. Thanks to Bloody Disgusting, the first look at the newest Scream poster has arrived, showcasing Ghostface with a blood-stained knife in the moonlight.

This a definite throwback to early 1980s horror like Friday the 13th and is in a similar vein as another recent Creepy Duck Design poster. In terms of marketing for the latest Scream sequel, Paramount gets full points. Previous Scream films haven’t gone to the same extent in terms of promotion, typically spending most of their creative opportunities on inserting the sequel’s number into the title. But to date, Scream 2022 has delivered some pretty engaging posters as well as various tie-ins, all while keeping every last detail about the film under wraps. This has made the journey to the film’s upcoming January 14 release date a challenging one for fans – particularly with the delays that the film has faced. In the end, however, it seems like the teasing of the plot and the alluring artwork that’s come with that has succeeded in keeping fans focused on the film.

As previously mentioned, this is the first Scream film to be made without the involvement of Craven. This fact alone has been enough to make both fans and cast members nervous, though after working closely with Scream directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, long-time cast members like Neve Campbell and David Arquette have publicly declared their confidence in this being a film that honors as well as elevates the entire franchise. (source: screenrant.com)

(ROHN ROMULO)