Warning: Spoilers for Scream 2022 and The Matrix Resurrections
Both Scream slasher horror franchise, following Sidney Prescott and the masked killer Ghostface, who is played by different characters in each movie. Both movies make extensive references to previous installments in their respective sagas, making them an interesting meta double bill.
There has been a popular trend among Hollywood Studios to reboot iconic franchises from years past with sequels featuring a mix of older legacy characters and new characters. From original characters in The Matrix Resurrections, highlighting that playing with established franchise tropes and traditions can be risky.
In both The Matrix Resurrections and Scream 2022 a familiar line-up of returning faces features alongside a litany of new characters. Narratively, each film also shares similarities with its various franchise predecessors, calling back on key scenes and lines of dialogue in a variety of inventive ways. However, despite the similarities, one movie is demonstrably more successful as an enjoyable meta-sequel than the other. Here's why, ultimately, Scream 2022 is a better meta-sequel than The Matrix Resurrections.
Scream 2022 & The Matrix Resurrections Are Both About Making Sequels
Scream 2022 and The Matrix Resurrections both heavily lean into the concept of creating sequels that appeal to a rabid fan base. In Resurrections, game developers argue over what makes a compelling yet subversive sequel. In Scream 2022, the opening scene mentions other popular horror films like The Matrix Resurrections bombed at the box office, suggesting that just tossing in a few self-referential jokes isn't enough to create a compelling meta-commentary on an entire film genre.
The Matrix 4 Pokes Fun At The Universe (But Doesn't Go Far Enough)
While both films contain a lot of meta elements, The Matrix Resurrections falls short on actually integrating the references into the plot. Instead of drawing the viewer deeper into the story, hearing the company name "Warner Brothers" in a line in Resurrections shatters the illusion of the world created in the original Matrix trilogy. It comes across as a joke that would better fit Ryan Reynold's Deadpool. Furthermore, all of the meta-references occur at the beginning of this film, attempting to set up the idea that the original Matrix trilogy was merely a series of video games that the character Thomas Anderson developed. This isn't the craziest idea in a sci-fi action film, but it simply doesn't fit within the context of the already established world of the original Matrix films. The notion of video game realities and the philosophical nature of existence is soon tossed aside in favor of action sequences and an awkward romance between Neo and a (now married) Trinity. Resurrections simply didn't go far enough in attempting to convince the audience that any of the meta jokes actually mattered to the story.
Scream 5's Meta-Story Is Perfect For The Franchise
The original Scream movie made multiple references to other horror films and cleverly made fun of itself. A classic example is the iconic line "I'll be right back," which is explicitly said to be a death sentence in both the original Scream and this latest installment, Scream 2022. In every Scream film, characters talk about the rules of a horror movie when trying to solve the mystery of the killer's identity and determine who will be next to die. The in-movie slasher "Stab" is called a "Meta-slasher-whodunnit, full stop." This perfectly describes events of the entire Scream timeline. The films aren't the goriest, nor are they the scariest, but the comedy generated from the self-referential jokes paired with the suspense of not knowing who the killers are makes the Scream franchise truly legendary in the slasher horror genre. Resurrections doesn't even come close to this level of meta-humor, nor should it have to, as these are ostensibly two very different films.
Why Scream 5 Works Better Than The Matrix: Resurrections
It is abundantly clear that the meta-jokes are better executed in Scream 2022. One character has an extended monologue about the "requel," the current Hollywood concept of doing a reboot and sequel in the same movie, to revive beloved franchises. Some examples listed in the film include legacy characters, the camera literally cuts to Dwight "Dewey" Riley (David Arquette) from the original films. Scream 2022 is also full of intentional jump-scare fakeouts played for comedic purposes, demonstrating that the filmmakers recognize the intelligence of their audience.
Joking about the fact that Neo can't fly in Resurrections simply doesn't land the same way, and appears to have no relationship to the story. Neo is once again trapped in the Matrix on a mission to save Trinity, which is just a repeat setup of the original movie. But Scream reinvents itself with each new movie. The form is established, then twisted, talked about, and deconstructed by characters within the world of the Scream movies themselves. Scream 2022 goes so far as to ask its audience "How can fandom be toxic?" and plenty of lines call out the audience directly for expecting something other than what they get. This is on par for the Scream franchise, and Scream 2022 adeptly continues this tradition of satirizing the slasher horror genre, making ita better meta-sequel than The Matrix Resurrections by far.
