It’s nearly impossible to predict the box office of any movie right now, what with the pandemic completely upending the industry for the past two years and all. While some films have proven to be pandemic proof – Spider-Man: No Way Home has far surpassed $1 billion globally – others just haven’t been able to convince people to head to their local theater right now.

The first big time new release of 2022 is Scream, which is slashing its way into theaters on January 14, 2022. But just how “pandemic proof” will Ghostface’s return prove to be?

“Industry predictions for Scream are in the $35-$40M range over 4 days,” Indiewire reports. “The first new film in the franchise since 2011 is set for the usually lucrative four-day Martin Luther King holiday weekend. Its audience should be minimally impacted by omicron concerns: Although there are some closures in Canada, so far there have been no moves to limit U.S. theaters.” The site adds, “Scream could result in $80 million or more by the month’s end.”

How did Wes Craven’s Scream 4 perform back in 2011, you ask? That year, Ghostface’s return scared up $38 million domestically and $97 million worldwide, opening with $18.7 million domestically in its first weekend. In other words, Scream is likely to far surpass Scream 4 at the box office, both films coming along eleven years after the previous installments.

The circumstances of Scream’s return are quite different in 2022 than they were in 2011, and not only because of the ongoing pandemic. For starters, Wes Craven is no longer with us, the baton being passed to new filmmakers Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett. And the fanbase has only grown for Scream this past decade, with nostalgia for the 1990s now in full swing. It was probably a smart move for Paramount to title the new movie Scream rather than Scream 5, as its sequel status will appeal to longtime fans but the title won’t deter newcomers.

Our prediction? We’re thinking Scream will smash through that $40 million mark over the 4-day holiday weekend, and easily leg its way to $100 million domestically here in early 2022.

Stay tuned. And get your tickets now!

The filmmaking team this time around includes directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett, as well as executive producer Chad Villella, the three members of the filmmaking group Radio Silence (Ready or Not, V/H/S, Southbound). In the new movie…

“Twenty-five years after a streak of brutal murders shocked the quiet town of Woodsboro, a new killer has donned the Ghostface mask and begins targeting a group of teenagers to resurrect secrets from the town’s deadly past.”

Dylan Minnette (Goosebumps), Mason Gooding (Let It Snow), Kyle Gallner (Ghosts of War), Jasmin Savoy Brown (“Love”) and Mikey Madison (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) join an ensemble that also includes Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott, David Arquette and Courteney Cox who will return as Dewey Riley and Gale Weathers, as well as new cast members Jack Quaid (“The Boys”), Melissa Barrera (“In The Heights”) and Jenna Ortega (“You”). Marley Shelton is also returning as Scream 4 character Deputy Judy Hicks.

James Vanderbilt (Murder Mystery, Zodiac, The Amazing Spider-Man) and Guy Busick (Ready or Not, Castle Rock) wrote the script. Michel Aller edited the film, which is now complete.

Below, you can join our own Halloweenies podcast as they break down the recent first trailer for the highly anticipated sequel. Lots of theories already!