10 Long-Gestating Movie Sequels That Were Worth The Wait
8. Scream 4
Years Waited: 11
The Scream franchise is pretty weak. The first film is a meta-classic, but the second and third films (despite all of them being helmed by genre legend Wes Craven) were pretty much dead on arrival. The first film told a perfectly contained story and the sequels tried to expand on it in increasingly derivative ways that just never quite worked.
But a decade after the release of Scream 3, Craven and the gang returned for Scream 4. And not only is it the best sequel, it may very well be even better than the original film. With the benefit of time, Scream 4 is able to look back at the original film and include it among its meta-commentary, rather than try to force narrative tie-ins at every turn.
Serving as Craven's final film before he died, Scream 4 is a terrific swansong that embodies everything his filmography stood for. It sees him stepping up to plate one last time and outdoing himself, delivering insane amounts of blood, some truly inventive kills, killer suspense, and a final chapter for the franchise that is more than satisfying.