Scream 7 Box Office Projected to Break Franchise Record in Opening Weekend

February 25, 2026, 3:22pm

After a banner year at the box office in 2025, the horror genre has had trouble replicating that success in the early part of 2026. Sam Raimi’s Send Help earned positive reviews, but it was only a modest draw ($83.3 million worldwide against a $40 million production budget); 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple bombed its way out of theaters; Psycho Killer made headlines for its lowly Rotten Tomatoes score and wasn’t a hit. However, things could be changing this weekend with the arrival of Scream 7, the latest installment of the long-running horror franchise. Based on the latest projections, the sequel could even make a bit of history.

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According to Variety, Scream 7 is estimated to earn between $45-50 million domestically in its first three days. Even the low end of that range would be higher than Scream 6 ($44.4 million), making it a new franchise record. Assuming Scream 7 opens in line with its projections, it will easily score the year’s biggest debut in the United States, beating out Wuthering Heights ($32.8 million).

Can Scream 7 Exceed Its Box Office Projections?

Last year’s horror hits had one notable thing in common. They exceeded commercial expectations by posting higher openings than anticipated. In some cases (Sinners, Weapons), these performances were driven by enthusiastic word of mouth that made the film a must-see in theaters. Other horror blockbusters received more mixed reviews (The Conjuring: Last Rites) but continued a long-running franchise audiences enjoy. Since the genre has demonstrated it can still be a reliable box office draw amidst changing moviegoing habits, it’s worth wondering if Scream 7 can beat the projections.

Since launching three decades ago, the Scream franchise has performed consistently at the box office; the only installment to not top $100 million worldwide is Scream 4, which earned $97.1 million. The series is coming off one of its highest-grossing entries yet in Scream VI ($169 million). So, Scream has a solid track record that’s hard to bet against. There’s a scenario where Scream 7 becomes the next Conjuring: Last Rites and breaks records in its debut, taking advantage of a relatively quiet marketplace. Horror fans enjoyed Send Help, but that came out a month ago, and there hasn’t been anything of note targeting that demographic since. Especially with franchise legend Neve Campbell returning, Scream 7 should be highly anticipated.

That said, there are some factors working against Scream 7. As of this writing, there’s no Rotten Tomatoes score available. This can be interpreted as a concerning sign since preview screenings start tomorrow, February 26th. Typically, if reviews are held under embargo this close to release, it means the studio is trying to prevent spread of negative word of mouth. There are other reasons for this strategy, of course; Scream 7 features the returns of several franchise veterans, meaning there could be twists and surprises. Paramount doesn’t want spoilers to leak ahead of time, ruining the experience for fans. Once reviews are finally published, it will be interesting to see what the response is. That word of mouth could have an impact on the box office prospects; if people are disappointed, general audiences could opt to stay home.

Scream 7 had a notoriously troubled path to the big screen, undergoing massive changes behind the scenes as Scream 5 and Scream VI star Melissa Barrera was controversially fired from the franchise, and her co-star Jenna Ortega later departed the series. That forced the creative team to pivot in a different direction, and it remains to be seen how this all turns out. Some of the greatest films of all time endured difficult productions and at times seemed doomed, so there’s precedent for Scream 7 overcoming the adversity. It isn’t facing much competition as it opens this weekend, so fingers crossed it fares well at the box office.

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