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Here's a new edition of "Directors at the Box Office", which seeks to explore the directors' trajectory at the box office and analyze their hits and bombs. I already talked about a few, and as I promised, it's Wes Craven's turn.
Craven earned a master's degree in philosophy and writing from Johns Hopkins University. He subsequently bought a 16mm film camera and began making short movies. His friend Steve Chapin informed him of a messenger position at a New York City film production co, where his brother, future folk-rock star Harry Chapin worked. He started in the industry as a sound editor, before transitioning as a porn director. He said he made "many hardcore X-rated films" under pseudonyms. And then he transitioned into directing for the big screen.
From a box office perspective, how reliable was he to deliver a box office hit?
That's the point of this post. To analyze his career.

It should be noted that as he started his career in the 1970s, some of the domestic grosses here will be adjusted by inflation. The table with his highest grossing films, however, will be left in its unadjusted form, as the worldwide grosses are more difficult to adjust.

The Last House on the Left (1972)

"Mari, seventeen, is dying. Even for her, the worst is yet to come."
His directorial debut. The film stars Sandra Peabody, Lucy Grantham, David Hess, Fred J. Lincoln, Jeramie Rain, and Marc Sheffler. The plot follows Mari Collingwood, a teenager who is abducted, raped, and tortured by a family of violent fugitives led by Krug Stillo on her seventeenth birthday. When her parents discover what happened to her, they seek vengeance against the family, who have taken shelter at their home.
Craven, who had no money at the time, was put on the job of synchronizing dailies for Sean S. Cunningham's Together. They became friends, and Hallmark Releasing gave them $90,000 to make another film. Craven considered a hardcore film, but decided to tone it down a bit. The idea for this film came from Ingmar Bergman's The Virgin Spring, and Craven wanted to make a film in which the violence would be shown in detail onscreen, as he felt that many popular films of the era, such as Westerns, glamorized violence and the "vigilante hero", and gave the public a misleading representation of death in the wake of the Vietnam War.
The film attracted negative media attention for its heavy graphic content, and there were calls for some theaters to drop the film. But you know, bad buzz is still buzz and that translated to a pretty good run in theaters, earning up to $3 million in its initial run. Even to this day, the film is polarizing due to its violence and themes. But Craven just made his name well known.

• Budget: $90,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $3,100,000. ($23.1 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $3,100,000.
  

The Hills Have Eyes (1977)

"A nice American family. They didn't want to kill. But they didn't want to die."
His second film. The film stars Susan Lanier, Michael Berryman and Dee Wallace. The film follows the Carters, a suburban family targeted by a family of cannibal savages after becoming stranded in the Nevada desert.
Craven wanted to make a non-horror, but he found that his investors only wanted films with graphic content. At the New York Public Library, Craven checked the library's forensics department, and learned of the legend of Sawney Bean - the alleged head of a 48-person Scottish clan responsible for the murder and cannibalization of more than one thousand people. He drew influences from this, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and The Grapes of Wrath. Craven also had to cut a lot of scenes to avoid getting an X rating.
The film once again drew negative attention for its violence. But it made over $25 million at the box office, which was an even bigger success than House. It subsequently earned a cult following.

• Budget: $700,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $25,000,000. ($128.8 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $25,000,000.
  

Deadly Blessing (1981)

"Pray you're not blessed."
His third film. It stars Ernest Borgnine, Maren Jensen, Susan Buckner, and Sharon Stone, and tells the story of a strange figure committing murder in a contemporary community that is not far from another community that believes in ancient evil and curses.
It received negative reviews, but it was another box office success for Craven.

• Budget: $3,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $8,279,042. ($28.4 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $8,279,042.
  

Swamp Thing (1982)

"Science transformed him into a monster. Love changed him even more!"
His fourth film. Based on the DC Comics character created by Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson, it stars Louis Jourdan and Adrienne Barbeau. It tells the story of scientist Alec Holland who is transformed into the monster known as Swamp Thing through laboratory sabotage orchestrated by the evil Anton Arcane. Later, he helps a woman named Alice Cable and battles the man responsible for it all, the ruthless Arcane.
The film made $2.5 million domestically, despite mixed reviews.

• Budget: N/A.
  
• Domestic gross: $2,500,000. ($8 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $2,500,000.
  

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

"If Nancy doesn't wake up screaming, she won't wake up at all."
His fifth film. It stars Heather Langenkamp, John Saxon, Ronee Blakley, Johnny Depp, and Robert Englund. The film's plot concerns a group of teenagers who are targeted by Freddy Krueger, an undead child killer who can murder people through their dreams, as retribution against their parents who burned him alive.
The film was inspired by several newspaper articles printed in the Los Angeles Times in the 1970s about Hmong refugees, who, after fleeing to the United States because of war and genocide in Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam, suffered disturbing nightmares and refused to sleep. Some of the men died in their sleep soon after. This, along with the song "Dream Weaver" by Gary Wright, motivated Craven to craft a horror film focused on people dying through their sleep.
The film's villain, Freddy Krueger, is drawn from Craven's early life. One night, a young Craven saw an elderly man walking on the sidepath outside the window of his home. The man stopped to glance at a startled Craven and walked off. This served as the inspiration for Krueger. Initially, Fred Krueger was intended to be a child molester, but Craven eventually characterized him as a child murderer to avoid being accused of exploiting a spate of highly publicized child molestation cases that occurred in California around the time of the film's production. He settled on the name Freddy Krueger, which was based on a childhood bully of his.
The process of writing the film went smoothly, the real problem was finding a studio. Craven sent it to most studios, and all rejected it. The first studio to show interest was Disney, but Craven declined their offer as they wanted a more toned-down kid-friendly PG-13 flick. When Paramount and Universal also turned it down, Craven decided to go to the independent studio New Line Cinema. The studio only distributed films, but they agreed in financing the film. As they lacked the financial resources for the production, New Line had to turn to external financiers.
Despite opening in just 165 theaters, the film earned $1.2 million in its opening weekend, making it clear that it would be an immediate box office success. It eventually closed with $25 million domestically, and $57 million worldwide. It received critical acclaim, and has been referred as one of the best and most influential slashers ever made. Freddy Krueger would soon be hailed as one of the most emblematic figures of horror, and Craven quickly earned a reputation as a horror legend. But most importantly, it was the beginning of New Line Cinema as a studio, which is why it's referred as "the house that Freddy built."
The film would later spawn a franchise, although Craven wouldn't direct any of the "sequels." Why the quotation marks? We'll get to that later on.

• Budget: $1,100,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $25,624,448. ($77 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $57,185,134.
  

The Hills Have Eyes Part II (1985)

"So you think you're lucky to be alive."
His sixth film. The sequel to The Hills Have Eyes, it stars Tamara Stafford, Kevin Spirtas, John Bloom, Michael Berryman, Penny Johnson, Janus Blythe, John Laughlin, Willard E. Pugh, Peter Frechette and Robert Houston. It follows a group of bikers who become stranded in the desert and find themselves fighting off a family of inbred cannibals who live off the land.
The film was shot on a very low budget, and it simply ended prematurely because they ran out of funds. There are no box office numbers available, but it received awful reviews.

Deadly Friend (1986)

"There's no one alive who'll play with the girl next door."
His seventh film. Based on the novel Friend by Diana Henstell, it stars Matthew Laborteaux, Kristy Swanson, Michael Sharrett, Anne Twomey, Richard Marcus, and Anne Ramsey. Its plot follows a teenage computer prodigy who implants a robot's processor into the brain of his teenage neighbor after she is pronounced brain dead; the experiment proves successful, but she swiftly begins a killing spree in their neighborhood.
Craven wanted to make a PG-rated science fiction film, with a similar tone to Starman, hoping to prove that he could make something that wasn't horror-themed. An unfinished version of the film was screened to a test audience of Craven's fanbase, and it was poorly received for its lack of violence and gore like his previous films. So WB decided to rewrite the film, adding more scenes with tons of gore. This made the final film appear tonally jumbled, and it went from easy PG to struggling to not get an X rating.
The film was poorly received for its story and inconsistent tone. It also marked a huge flop at the box office, not even hitting $10 million. Craven lost interest in the film after WB inserted their own version, and he has since disowned the film.

• Budget: $11,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $8,988,731. ($25.6 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $8,988,731.
  

The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988)

"Don't bury me, I'm not dead!"
His eighth film. It stars Bill Pullman, and is loosely based on the life of ethnobotanist Wade Davis, recounting his experiences in Haiti investigating the story of Clairvius Narcisse, who was allegedly poisoned, buried alive, and revived with a herbal brew which produced what was called a zombie.
The film received mixed reactions, but it was a much needed box office success for Craven.

• Budget: $7,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $19,595,031. ($51.7 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $19,595,031.
  

Shocker (1989)

"No more Mr. Nice Guy."
His ninth film. It stars Michael Murphy, Peter Berg, Cami Cooper, and Mitch Pileggi, and follows a serial killer who uses electricity to come back from the dead and carry out his vengeance on the football player who turned him in to the police.
Another mixed bag for Craven, but it was still profitable.

• Budget: N/A.
  
• Domestic gross: $16,554,699. ($41.6 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $16,554,699.
  

The People Under the Stairs (1991)

"In every neighborhood, there's one house that adults whisper about and children cross the street to avoid."
His tenth film. It stars Brandon Adams, Everett McGill, Wendy Robie, and A. J. Langer. The plot follows a young boy and two adult robbers who become trapped in a house belonging to a neighborhood's crooked landlords after breaking in to steal their collection of gold coins as the boy learns a dark secret about them and what also lurks in their house.
After a slate of mixed performers, the film received Craven's best reviews since Elm Street. To the surprise of Universal, it was also a box office success.

• Budget: $6,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $24,204,154. ($55.5 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $31,347,154.
  

Wes Craven's New Nightmare (1994)

"This time, the terror doesn't stop at the screen."
His 11th film. The installment in the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, it stars Robert Englund, Heather Langenkamp, Miko Hughes and John Saxon. The film is not part of the same continuity as previous films, and it portrays Freddy Krueger as a fictional movie villain who invades the real world and haunts the cast and crew involved in the making of the films about him.
While Craven co-wrote the franchise's third installment, Dream Warriors, he wasn't that involved with the rest of the franchise. He wanted to make a deliberately more cerebral film than recent entries to the franchise, as he considered them as being cartoonish, and not faithful to his original themes. Specifically, he wanted Freddy to resemble his original vision: far darker and less comical. To reinforce this, the character's make-up and outfit were enhanced, with one of the most prominent differences being that he now wears a long blue/black trenchcoat. In addition, the signature glove was redesigned for a more organic look, with the fingers resembling bones and having muscle textures in between.
The film received high praise, and was considered as the best film in the franchise since the original (it was Englund's favorite). But the franchise has been bleeding interest at the box office, and New Nightmare unfortunately had to suffer. It was profitable, but it became the lowest grossing film in the franchise.

• Budget: $8,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $18,090,181. ($38.1 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $19,721,741.
  

Vampire in Brooklyn (1995)

"A comic tale of horror and seduction."
His 12th film. It stars Eddie Murphy, Angela Bassett, Allen Payne, Kadeem Hardison, John Witherspoon, Zakes Mokae, and Joanna Cassidy. It follows a Caribbean vampire who seduces a Brooklyn police officer who has no idea that she is half-vampire.
The film had awful reviews, and despite the presence of a huge star like Eddie Murphy, it disappointed at the box office. Craven really needed a hit.

• Budget: $8,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $19,751,736. ($40.4 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $34,951,736.
  

Scream (1996)

"Someone has taken their love of scary movies one step too far."
His 13th film. It stars David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Matthew Lillard, Rose McGowan, Skeet Ulrich and Drew Barrymore. Set in the fictional town of Woodsboro, California, Scream's plot follows high school student Sidney Prescott and her friends, who, on the anniversary of her mother's murder, become the targets of a costumed serial killer known as Ghostface.
As he was trying to make it in the industry, Kevin Williamson watched a Turning Point documentary about serial killer Danny Rolling which he said left him unsettled. Williamson later noticed an open window, armed himself with a knife, and called his friend for support. The pair began discussing horror characters that had resonated with them such as Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees. This experience prompted Williamson to start developing a concept wherein a girl is haunted by a caller.
He started writing a film titled Scary Movie, and even left an outline for possible sequels. The concept was part of an era where there was debate over the influence of cinematic violence on audience, with Williamson coming up with a brilliant line "movies don't create psychos, movies make psychos more creative." It was inspired by many 1980s slashers, even though the genre was on decline by that point. His characters were intentionally designed to be knowledgeable about these horror films and their typical elements, with the intention of creating a unique killer who was not only aware of horror film clichés but also exploited them for his own advantage.
While Williamson struggled with his previous films, this script was part of a bidding war with the studios, to the point that Oliver Stone himself wanted to direct it. Miramax (through Dimension Films) bought the script, and Williamson made some rewrites to scale back the violence. Bob Weinstein also wanted to change the name, as he believed the audiences would think the film is a comedy.
The studio considered Danny Boyle, Tom McLoughlin, Sam Raimi, Robert Rodriguez, George A. Romero, Quentin Tarantino, and Anthony Waller as prime candidates to direct the film, but they all preferred to view the film as a comedy. Wes Craven was considered, but the studio believed he couldn't direct a satire. Craven also wasn't planning on directing it, as he wanted to focus on more mainstream films to salvage his career. Craven's assistant Julie Plec (who would collaborate with Williamson on The Vampire Diaries) convinced him in helming the project. By signing, Craven decided to get back some of the gore that was missing in the previous drafts.
A huge contrast to the horror films of the era was that the film had established actors as the leads, as Craven and Williamson wanted to prove that no character was safe. Drew Barrymore had already starred in a few recognizable names, Neve Campbell was on the hit show Party of Five, Rose McGowan was known for Encino Man and The Doom Generation, David Arquette, Matthew Lillard and Skeet Ulrich were recognizable supporting characters, and Courteney Cox obviously was known for Friends. Vince Vaughn and Natasha Lyonne were the preferred choices for Billy and Tatum, but external problems caused them to drop out.
After viewing the dailies raw footage, the Weinsteins criticized the quality of Craven's work as "workmanlike at best", believing it lacked tension and had an inconsistent tone. The Weinsteins also disliked the mask design, and said Barrymore lacked sex appeal because of the pageboy hairstyle she had chosen. While filming the final fight, Campbell's stuntwoman accidentally stabbed Ulrich with an umbrella tip, missing the protective vest he was wearing and hitting the site of an open heart surgery Ulrich had as a child. During post-production, Harvey Weinstein decided to name the film as Scream based on the Michael and Janet Jackson song.
In a surprising move, the Weinsteins decided to release the film during the holiday season as counter-programming, offering teenagers an alternative to more traditional holiday fare. The decision was unpopular with the cast and crew, with Williamson expecting the film to fail. The film opened with $6.4 million and finishing in fourth place, leading analysts to consider the film as a bomb.
But the film just kept growing.
Buoyed by positive word of mouth, the Weinsteins increased marketing and the film managed to increase in its second and third weekends. It closed with $103 million domestically and $173 million worldwide, becoming the highest grossing slasher film ever and Craven's highest grossing film ever. The film received critical acclaim for its characters and writing, and has since been deemed as one of the most influential horror films of all time. It rekindled interest in horror, resurrected Craven's career and launched the careers of Williamson and the cast.

• Budget: $15,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $103,046,663. ($245.4 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $173,046,663.
  

Scream 2 (1997)

"Someone has taken their love of sequels one step too far."
His 14th film. The sequel to Scream, it stars David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jamie Kennedy, Laurie Metcalf, Jerry O'Connell, Elise Neal, Timothy Olyphant, Jada Pinkett, and Liev Schreiber. The film takes place two years after the first film and again follows the character of Sidney Prescott, along with other survivors of the Woodsboro massacre, at the fictional Windsor College in Ohio where they are targeted by a copycat killer using the guise of Ghostface.
As Williamson already had plans for sequels, the idea was for Sidney to attend college while being stalked by a copycat Ghostface killer. As filming began, Williamson's script had four killers: Derek, Hallie, Cotton Weary, and Nancy Loomis. But after Williamson transferred his script to the production, it was leaked onto the Internet in full, revealing the identity of the killers and a large amount of the involved plot. This resulted in the production continuing to film with only a partial script while Williamson conducted extensive rewrites, changing much of the film's finale, the identities of the film's killers and drastically altering the roles of other characters such as Randy Meeks and Joel. With a short deadline, Williamson couldn't fully compromise on the final script, forcing Craven to fill in the gaps himself. So the film was one of the very first cases where the Internet leaked major aspects of a film.
As the Weinsteins wanted the film ready for December, it was able to capitalize on the audience's word of mouth to the original. It opened with $32 million in its first weekend, almost five times as big as the original, and the biggest December debut. It didn't hold as great as the original due to the competition, such as Titanic, but it still made $172.3 million worldwide, almost matching the original's gross. It also received very positive reviews, and so a profitable franchise was already underway.

• Budget: $24,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $101,363,301. ($237.2 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $172,363,301.
  

Music of the Heart (1999)

"She gave them a gift they could never imagine. They gave the system a fight it would never forget."
His 15th film. The film stars Meryl Streep, Aidan Quinn, Angela Bassett, Gloria Estefan, Jane Leeves, Kieran Culkin and Jay O. Sanders. The film is a dramatization of the true story of Roberta Guaspari, who co-founded the Opus 118 Harlem School of Music and fought for music education funding in New York City public schools.
After seeing the documentary Small Wonders, Craven was inspired to make a full-length film about Guaspari. Madonna was originally signed to play the role of Guaspari, but left the project before filming began, citing "creative differences" with Craven. When she left, Madonna had already studied for many months to play the violin. Streep learned to play Bach's Concerto for 2 Violins for the film. The project marked a huge departure for Craven; it was his first and only film to be rated PG, and his only one to not be horror or thriller.
It received generally positive reviews, but it bombed at the box office. It received 2 Oscar nominations for Best Actress and Best Original Song, the only Craven film to get any noms.

• Budget: $27,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $14,859,394. ($27.8 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $14,936,407.
  

Scream 3 (2000)

"The most terrifying scream is always the last."
His 16th film. The third installment in the Scream franchise, it stars David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox Arquette, Parker Posey, Patrick Dempsey, Scott Foley, Lance Henriksen, Matt Keeslar, Jenny McCarthy, Emily Mortimer, Deon Richmond, and Patrick Warburton. The film's story takes place one year after the previous film's events and follows Sidney Prescott, who has gone into self-imposed isolation following the events of the previous two films but is drawn to Hollywood after a new Ghostface begins killing the cast of the film within a film Stab 3.
The plans for a sequel were already underway since Williamson sold the script, although Williamson still didn't write a script yet. When the Weinsteins approached him to write the film, Williamson was already busy with many projects (including his directorial debut), and was unavailable to perform his duties. He only made a 20-page outline wherein Ghostface would return just as production on a fictional film Stab 3 would be filmed. His plan was to show the killers were part of a Stab fan club (this idea would later be adapted into his show, The Following). With Williamson not available, Ehren Kruger was tasked in writing.
Shortly before production began on the film, the Columbine High School massacre took place, and many parties began looking for reasoning behind the shooters' actions and there came an increased scrutiny on the role of the media in society, including video games and film, and the influence it could have on an audience. With production of Scream 3 not yet underway, there were considerations about whether the film should be made at that time, aware of the potential for negative attention but the studio decided to press forward, albeit with changes.
The Weinsteins demanded to scale back on the gore and emphasize its satiric humor, as well as moving the setting to Hollywood. At one point in the production, the studio went as far as demanding that the film feature no blood or on-screen violence at all, a drastic departure for the series, but Craven directly intervened. One of the aspects changed was that the killer would be revealed to be Stu Macher, having survived the original film. The Weinsteins changed it after Columbine, as they didn't want to associate violence and murder with a high school setting.
The film opened with $34.7 million, a franchise record and the biggest February debut ever. But it had weak legs, although it still made a very profitable $161.8 million worldwide. While the previous films were well-received, this film received negative reviews, who lambasted the film for becoming the very own thing it satirizes.

• Budget: $40,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $89,143,175. ($178.2 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $161,834,276.
  

Cursed (2005)

"What doesn't kill you makes you stronger."
His 17th film. It stars Christina Ricci, Joshua Jackson, Jesse Eisenberg, Judy Greer, Scott Baio, Milo Ventimiglia, Shannon Elizabeth and Mýa, and follows two orphaned siblings attacked by a werewolf loose in Los Angeles.
Kevin Williamson started working on a script that followed the exploits of a New York City serial killer who discovers that his lethal tendencies are due to his lycanthrope nature. When one of his projects was scrapped, Craven decided to direct, teaming them up again for another Scream reunion. But it wasn't planned like that. Craven was making a film, Pulse, when Bob Weinstein abruptly pulled the movie from the schedule ten days before shooting and cut through all the slow lanes, wanting Craven to get to Cursed as soon as possible. Craven was reportedly not pleased so Weinstein doubled his pay in order for him to direct the film. The director deemed the script too tonally similar to his film Vampire in Brooklyn, but felt pressured by the studio, leading him to ultimately sign on.
The film started filming in January 2003, hoping to get the film released in August. In June, they only had six days left for filming. Suddenly, Dimension Films decided to put the movie on hold because top executives at the company weren't happy with the film's ending or how the special effects were progressing, specifically the look of the film's lead lupine. Rick Baker was preparing the final transformation effects when production stopped and asked Weinstein to let his team finish the work in order for it to be ready for the reshoot, but he refused. Patrick Lussier was brought in for massive rewrites, and the film didn't return to production until November. Baker was fired, and the prosthetic make-up was replaced with CGI. Skeet Ulrich filmed his scene as one of the leads, but chose to drop out following the reshoots as he disliked the new direction. It was also heavily edited to get the R rating down to PG-13. The budget was originally $35 million, yet some reports suggest it ballooned all the way to $100 million, making it one of the most expensive horror films ever.
With that budget, it was clear it was not going to be a box office success. It flopped with just $29 million worldwide, and was panned by critics. Craven himself dislikes the final product, and a director's cut was never an option because his original ending was never filmed.

• Budget: $100,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $19,297,522. ($30.8 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $29,621,722.
  

Red Eye (2005)

"Fear takes flight."
His 18th film. It stars Rachel McAdams, Cillian Murphy, and Brian Cox. The story follows a hotel manager ensnared in an assassination plot by a terrorist while aboard a red-eye flight to Miami.
The film received Craven's best reviews in years, and was a box office success, earning almost $100 million. While he is fine with people loving it, Cillian Murphy is not really fond of the film, "I love Rachel McAdams and we had fun making it but I don’t think it's a good movie. It’s a good B movie."

• Budget: $26,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $57,891,803. ($92.5 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $96,258,201.
  

My Soul to Take (2010)

"Only one has the power to save their souls."
His 19th film. It stars Max Thieriot, Denzel Whitaker, Raul Esparza, and Shareeka Epps. It follows Adam "Bug" Hellerman, who is one of seven teenagers chosen to die following the anniversary of a serial killer's death.
This was Craven's first film in almost two decades where he would be directing, producing and writing. But that didn't pan out to a success: it was a critical and commercial dud.

• Budget: $25,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $14,744,435. ($21.1 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $21,500,813.
  

Scream 4 (2011)

"New decade. New rules."
His 20th and final film. The fourth installment in the Scream franchise, it stars David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, Anthony Anderson, Alison Brie, Adam Brody, Rory Culkin, Marielle Jaffe, Erik Knudsen, Mary McDonnell, Marley Shelton, Nico Tortorella, and Roger L. Jackson. The film takes place on the fifteenth anniversary of the original Woodsboro murders from Scream and involves Sidney Prescott returning to the town after ten years, where Ghostface once again begins killing students from Woodsboro High.
In 2010, Williamson and Craven confirmed their plans for a new film. Craven said that endless sequels, the modern spew of remakes, film studios, and directors are the butts of parodies in the film. The main characters have to figure out where the horror genre is in current days to figure out the modern events happening to and around them. This was the first film in the franchise to use CGI, with the knife's blade added in post-production.
Even though the franchise was profitable, it seemed like its glory days were long behind it by the time it hit theaters. The film disappointed in its opening weekend with just $18 million, and closed with a weak $97 million worlwide, far less than the previous films. It also received mixed reviews, particularly for its writing and new characters. It was the last film directed by Craven before his death in 2015.

• Budget: $40,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $38,180,928. ($53 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $97,231,420.
  

MOVIES (FROM HIGHEST GROSSING TO LEAST GROSSING)

No.	Movie	Year	Studio	Domestic Total	Overseas Total	Worldwide Total	Budget
1	Scream	1996	Dimension Films	$103,046,663	$70,000,000	$173,046,663	$15M
2	Scream 2	1997	Dimension Films	$101,363,301	$71,000,000	$172,363,301	$24M
3	Scream 3	2000	Dimension Films	$89,143,175	$72,691,101	$161,834,276	$40M
4	Scream 4	2011	Dimension Films	$38,180,928	$59,050,492	$97,231,420	$40M
5	Red Eye	2005	DreamWorks	$57,891,803	$38,366,398	$96,258,201	$26M
6	A Nightmare on Elm Street	1984	New Line Cinema	$25,624,448	$31,560,686	$57,185,134	$1.1M
7	Vampires in Brooklyn	1995	Paramount	$19,751,736	$15,200,000	$34,951,736	$14M
8	The People Under the Stairs	1991	Universal	$24,204,154	$7,143,000	$31,347,154	$6M
9	Cursed	2005	Miramax	$19,297,522	$10,324,200	$29,621,722	$100M
10	The Hills Have Eyes	1977	Vanguard	$25,000,000	$0	$25,000,000	$700K
11	My Soul to Take	2010	Universal	$14,744,435	$6,756,378	$21,500,813	$25M
12	Wes Craven's New Nightmare	1994	New Line Cinema	$18,090,181	$1,631,560	$19,721,741	$8M
13	The Serpent and the Shadow	1988	Universal	$19,595,031	$0	$19,595,031	$7M
14	Shocker	1989	Universal	$16,554,699	$0	$16,554,699	N/A
15	Music of the Heart	1999	Miramax	$14,859,394	$77,013	$14,936,407	$27M
16	Deadly Friend	1986	Warner Bros.	$8,988,731	$0	$8,988,731	$11M
17	Deadly Blessing	1981	United Artists	$8,279,042	$0	$8,279,042	$3M
18	The Last House on the Left	1972	Hallmark Releasing	$3,100,000	$0	$3,100,000	$90K
19	Swamp Thing	1982	Embassy	$2,500,000	$0	$2,500,000	N/A

He made 20 films, but only 19 have reported box office numbers. Across those 19 films, he made $994,016,071 worldwide. That's $52,316,635 per film.

The Verdict

Quite inconsistent, but a very iconic figure in the horror genre. You know you made it big when your creations include Elm Street and Scream. Craven often struggled with difficult productions (you can blame the Weinsteins for that), but he still managed to make competent and scary films, even if some are better than others. Some even see critical re-appraisal as time passes; even Scream 3 and Scream 4 have their fans. We don't know what he would've done with the franchise after the fourth film, but he made it clear he was exhausted by having to film without finished scripts. Rest in Peace to a horror legend.
Hope you liked this edition. You can find this and more in the wiki for this section.
The next director will be Clint Eastwood. I think I'll have to make two posts, given that he directed 42 films.
I asked you to choose who else should be in the run and the comment with the most upvotes would be chosen. Well, we'll later talk about... Ang Lee. A legendary Asian director.
This is the schedule for the following four:

Week	Director	Reasoning
May 13-19	Clint Eastwood	Great actor. Great director.
May 20-26	Robert Zemeckis	Can we get old Zemeckis back?
May 27-June 2	Richard Donner	An influential figure of the 70s and 80s.
June 3-9	Ang Lee	What happened to Lee?

Who should be next after Lee? That's up to you. And there's a theme.
And that theme is: controversial directors. I'm talking directors who have attained a polarizing response to their films (like Zack Snyder), or the directors themselves are also controversial figures in real life (like Oliver Stone). Basically, a director that has as many fans as haters.

Hello! Sorry this took me so long. I’m here to try to answer the question of ALAMAT’s advocacy being performative or not. Buckle up because this is... very lengthy. (That’s why it took me so long to post it.) Please do not screenshot my post and share it on other platforms; I have extreme anxiety.
First off, let’s define the word “performative.” Merriam-Webster defines it as “(disapproving) made or done for show (as to bolster one’s own image or make a positive impression on others).” This definition is undoubtedly what is being meant when some people call ALAMAT’s advocacy performative.
So… what is their advocacy? This was their mission statement before:
“Sa pamamagitan ng musika, layunin ng ALAMAT ang ipagdiwang ang ating pagka-Pilipino at maitanim sa puso’t isipan ng mga kabataang Pinoy na hindi kailangan hubarin ang ating kultura’t pagkakakilanlan para lamang umangat at makilala sa pandaigdigang entablado.”
(Through music, ALAMAT’s mission is to celebrate our Filipino identity and to instill in the hearts and minds of the Filipino youth that we do not need to discard our culture and heritage in order to succeed and be recognized on the world stage.)
This is found in the description of their newer videos: “Alamat is a 6-member sing-rap-dance boy group from the Philippines that combines both traditional and modern Philippine cultural elements with Western/global influences in the various facets of their music, including dance, fashion, and iconography.”
I believe their newer statement is more in line with what they’re actually doing and puts less pressure on them. Their thing has always been taking precolonial cultural elements and modernizing them, and using indigenous elements but adding Western influences. It’s never been about “pure” representations, but infusing postcolonial, Westernized Filipino culture with precolonial or indigenous elements.
When some people call their advocacy performative, they are trying to say that:
1. ALAMAT’s concept of multiculturalism and embracing indigenous Philippine culture(s) is purely a gimmick. The members do not care about it, and neither does the creative director. Is that true? Let’s investigate:
I believe that it is possible for the members not to care about it if they were all pale-skinned, mestizo guys from Manila. However, all of them are probinsyanos, not all of them fit the dominant Eurocentric/East Asian-centric beauty standards, and most of them speak a different language (not Tagalog) as their mother tongue.
The director mentioned before that he specifically chose members who were short, because the industry favors taller men (despite the fact that the average height in the Philippines is considerably shorter than other countries’). Tomas alone is, in more than one way, the exact kind of person who can’t not care about ALAMAT’s advocacy: he is the shortest member, standing at around 5’5”, he’s moreno, and he’s a Bicolano speaker who has an accent when speaking in Tagalog. He talked about it here, all the way back in August 2021 pa. He said that he often got rejected in the acting industry because of his Bicolano accent.
Mo is visibly and proudly Blasian, Tomas is a short, moreno Bicolano, and Taneo is moreno and Indigenous on his father’s side. Even the members who fit the hegemonic beauty standards more — Jao with his tisoy/chinito looks, Alas with his pale skin and chinito looks, R-Ji who is fairly tall for a Filipino guy and has classically tisoy facial features a la Kyle Echarri — would struggle to fit in the industry for other reasons. Alas mentioned in the same interview as that one (more on that later) that he was often bullied for being Bisaya.
Hollywood actor Alex Mallari Jr. (Ginny & Georgia, The Adam Project) even Tweeted before that he wouldn’t be able to find acting work in the Philippines because he’s Kapampangan and moreno. (I can’t find the Tweet anymore because he deleted his account, sadly.)
The Philippine entertainment industry is highly colorist, highly favors Eurocentric and East Asian looks, and strongly discriminates against people from the probinsya, especially those whose first language isn’t Tagalog. My point here is that I would believe that these guys do not genuinely care about the advocacy/concept if they were the type of guys who could easily succeed in the industry without thinking about those things. But they are not.
Mo did a (really beautiful) interview with Mixed Asian Media, an independent online zine, not some prestigious, high-profile publication, in September 2023. He spoke about his mixed Black and Filipino identity. It is clear that this advocacy of promoting Filipino multiculturalism is highly personal to the members.
I’m not gonna lie — I think one of the main reasons that they have a reputation for “not being able to talk about their advocacy properly” is that a lot of people have unreasonable expectations regarding their speaking skills. They are young entertainers who simply have lived experiences that make the concept highly relevant to them. They are not academics and they are not diplomats. Not to mention that some of them aren’t confident when they speak in English or Tagalog.
They do explain their own emotional investment in the concept as well as they should reasonably be expected to explain it (“I care about it because I know how discrimination/lack of representation has affected me and the impact it’s had on people around me as well, so what we do makes me feel less insecure about my own cultural identity”).
You’ve got the members passionately speaking out about their own experiences (like here) and you’ve got academics for the more formal explanations. It’s not like they don’t invite academics to their platform, you know? An Akeanon professor who has published many relevant sociolinguistics studies spoke on one of their videos and they literally had a historian on their channel during their debut era.
As for their creative director, promoting multilingualism and multiculturalism has been this guy’s thing even before ALAMAT came to be. I know a lot of people aren’t huge fans of his, but we need to acknowledge that. I don’t get this idea that he’s just using this concept to make a quick buck because the Filipino entertainment industry and society still vastly favor Tagalog-centrism. Doing this concept was and is a risk.
He wrote the script for 2 Cool 2 Be 4Gotten (2016) and it features the Kapampangan language, even though it’s not directly related to the plot at all. Beauty Gonzalez was speaking in her native language, Cebuano Bisaya, in The Third Party (2016), even though it has no relevance to the plot or setting (a woman in Manila has to live with her bisexual ex and his boyfriend). His 2018 film, Bakwit Boys, heavily features the Kapampangan culture and language, inspired by his own upbringing.
As I’ve mentioned before, a few years ago, I found a research paper that included his blog post from 2007. To my amusement, he was credited simply as a “Filipino blogger,” but yeah… even in 2007, he was already speaking up about the discrimination against Bisaya folks, even though he himself is Kapampangan and not Bisaya.
2) They are only using Indigenous aesthetics, but don’t care about Indigenous peoples of the Philippines. Likewise, they use aesthetics from non-Tagalog cultures but don’t uplift non-Tagalog people.
To be honest, I believe that much of this is answered by the stuff above. However, putting aside the members’ own ethnic and cultural backgrounds, they definitely do work with and feature a lot of Indigenous and non-Tagalog talents on their platform. Some examples:

• They featured various Indigenous/non-Tagalog language speakers (besides the members) on one of their languages comparison video: https://youtu.be/KU0iUX6d7Ys
• They highlighted an Aeta tribe in “ABKD” and worked closely with them.
• A Maranao performer did a solo at their Pasulong album launch: https://youtu.be/oBTkIp7fu3Q?t=2675
• “say u love me” was co-written by Jin Chan, a Bisaya artist from Davao.
• “Day & Night” was co-written and co-composed by Therese Villarante-Langit, a Vispop artist who wrote Vispop songs like “My Morena Girl” (probably the most recognizable one).
• They also consistently give proper credit to the sources of their indigenous textiles. For example, you can easily find credits for Hanap Habi and Kandama Collective in the “Dagundong” MV description. They have worked with Hanap Habi and Kandama Collective for a long time now. Hanap Habi supports Indigenous female weavers in Benguet and Kandama Collective is owned by Victor Baguilat Jr., who is Ifugao.

Aside from that, they also publicly supported Indigenous rights at UP Fair this year:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GNEQHkOa8AAvC9h?format=jpg&name=medium
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GNEQHl6asAAUqrC?format=jpg&name=large
Predebut, Alas was also a youth coordinator for Let's Do It Philippines in Davao, which he talked about in their broadcast channel. LDIP is a grassroots coalition for environmental action, and he stated that his team helped Indigenous folks in Mindanao solve environmental issues.
Of course, there are always ways for the advocacy to be represented better. I myself have a major criticism of their MVs:
Their leading ladies are usually still very mestiza or chinita. There’s nothing wrong, of course, with having a mestiza/chinita leading lady. However, in “ABKD,” they show a young Aeta girl whose self-esteem is damaged by Eurocentric beauty standards and colorism. Yet their music videos often reinforce this beauty standard by almost always casting mestiza/fair-skinned chinita women as romantic leads. This beauty standard has an even greater impact on Filipina girls/women than men.
It’s sad, TBH, that “Maharani” is probably their only MV with naturalistic color grading among the ones that feature a romance storyline. Probably because Jhoanna is the only leading lady they’ve gotten so far* who actually registers as morena on-screen even without a filter that makes her look darker:
https://dryedmangoez.com/images/dryedmangoez/MUSICMONDAY012723.jpg
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GM-a-eabsAA3xkU?format=jpg&name=large
* I am aware that they featured Lyca Gairanod in their “ILY ILY” MV, but she was shown as the members’ classmate/sister(? unclear which), not in a romantic context.
I really hope they get morena leading ladies in upcoming MVs, especially after the “ABKD” MV condemned colorist beauty standards that damage the self-esteem of young girls especially. I know for a fact that Viva has morena talents, so even if they wanted to keep it in-house, they can still do better. Morena girls deserve to be shown as worthy of love. I hope the group features a more visually diverse set of leading ladies, as a part of their advocacy.
But yeah. Their advocacy is not perfect, but what we see indicates that the members’ and the creative team’s intentions are sincere. There are ways for it to be better, but they are definitely not performative and have already done so much great work in the few years that they have been a group.