The legendary film critic Barry Norman once said of a movie, “Laugh? I thought I’d never start!” That is exactly how I felt about this sixth instalment of the spoof comedy (?) that I thought had died a death after number 5 back in 2013. Now the Wayans, who made the first two films, are back, and while some might applaud this, it once again shows just how little they understand about spoof comedies. This is a progressively poor movie that throws everything at the screen with a scatterbomb effect, hoping something will stick. Well, surprise, surprise, nothing does, and what we get is a reminder of why these films were dire in the first place.

Ghostface is back and has its target on the children of Cindy, the original victim of the killer.

That is the wafer-thin plot. In fact, it was hard to even write that because this really doesn’t have a plot; it’s just a series of unfunny sketches lampooning various horror films from the past 20 years. Yes, their choice of films to stick it to is wide and varied, but as you are watching this mess, you realise just how dated it has already become. We get gags about Weapons, M3gan, Sinners, Longlegs and even Get Out. The trouble is, unless you have seen the films they are attacking, you won’t have a clue what makes them funny (or not in this case). There’s even an opening joke about One Battle After Another that is so niche, you’ll probably need to go back to see what the reference is.

That is the major issue. With films like Airplane!, The Naked Gun and Blazing Saddles took a genre and played the gags out from there, not ridiculing particular films, so there is more room to manoeuvre. Here, it’s just a way to tell the audience that the writers have seen a bunch of horror films and decided to make jokes about them. Their main target has always been Scream, but that was, in fact, a satire of the slasher horror genre made by a much more accomplished filmmaker.

In between the references to various horror films, the rest of the jokes are either offensive or just infantile. Gags about body parts, drugs, and LGBTQ+ all seem so out of date; you could blow the cobwebs off them. There’s even a joke about the craze 6/7 that is already well past its sell-by date. The one and only joke that seemed to be close to working was the one about the film Michael.

What makes all this so sad is that the Wayans used to be funny. The 1988 comedy I’m Gonna Get You Sucka, which spoofed blaxploitation movies, was a hoot because it understood it was tackling not just a whole type of film but the genre’s culture as well. Sadly, Keenan Ivory Wayans seems to have lost that magic as he is part of the writing team.

The cast does their best to inject energy into this nonsense, but shouting your lines doesn’t make them any funnier. Only the original cast members, Anna Faris and Regina Hall, come out best. Marlon Wayans as Shorty, the dope fiend, is back, as is Shawn Wayans as Ray, the gay member of the family who now just seems even more offensive. People look at movies from the past and can see how offensive they are, but no one told the Wayans.

Scary Movie will find an audience and, I am sure, be successful, even though I have no idea why. Get some classic spoofs and see just how to do it, because this just doesn’t cut the mustard. Laugh? I didn’t even start!

1 out of 5

Director: Michael Tiddes

Starring: Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Anna Faris, Regina Hall, Dave Sheridan, Kim Wayans, Chris Elliott, Olivia Rose Keegan, Cameron Scott Roberts, Savannah Lee Nassif

Written by: Keenan Ivory Wayans, Craig Wayans, Rick Alvarez, (also based on characters created) Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, (based on characters created) Buddy Johnson, Phil Beauman, Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer

Running Time: 96 mins

Cert: 15

Release date: 5th June 2026