Movie review
January 12, 2022 · 114 min · R
Woke Score
Lower is better
Review
The 2022 Scream is a legacy sequel set twenty-five years after the original Woodsboro murders. A new Ghostface attacks a group of teens tied to the past, forcing legacy survivors Sidney Prescott, Gale Weathers, and Dewey Riley to return and help new characters like sisters Sam and Tara Carpenter uncover the killer. The story centers on family secrets, fandom obsession, and a fresh cycle of violence in the small town. Audience-visible diversity appears in the new teen group with Latina leads and Black supporting roles, plus the franchise's first openly queer character in a key supporting part. Meta dialogue lightly nods to modern fandom toxicity and shifts in media sequels.
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for Scream.
Woke representation / casting
Prominent new leads and supporting roles feature Latina and Black actors plus the first openly queer character in the film series; diversity is clear to viewers but fits a modern setting without story contradictions or forced mismatches.
Woke political dialogue
Light meta lines about toxic fandom, requels, and Stab movies adding social messages appear as part of the killers' motives in a satirical tone rather than activist statements.
Identity-driven story themes
Mindy's queerness functions as background character detail and does not drive the murder mystery, family legacy, or main arcs.
Western institutional / cultural critique
The film satirizes entitled toxic fandom and Hollywood legacy sequels without framing traditional institutions, masculinity, family, or Western norms as oppressive or in need of activist dismantling.
Woke character or canon changes
Not relevant
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Online fans and some reviews specifically criticized diverse casting, the queer character, and survival patterns as quota-driven or agenda-pushing; this remained a vocal minority view.
Creator track record context
Williamson's public comments on queer influences in his writing and support for authentic LGBTQ+ characters in horror raise the score modestly; other key creatives show professional or low-profile records with no activist patterns.
Production
