In the Scream franchise there are some rules mentioned in every film about how to survive a horror movie, a sequel, a trilogy and a remake.

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Scream

Rules to succesfully survive a horror movie:

You may not survive the movie if you have sex.

You may not survive the movie if you drink or do drugs.

You may not survive the movie if you say "I'll be right back", "Hello?" or "Who's there?"

Scream 2

Rules to succesfully survive a horror movie sequel:

1. The body count is always bigger.

2. The death scenes are always much more elaborate, with more blood and gore.

3. Randy starts to describe the third rule: "If you want your films to become a successful franchise, never, ever...' before being interrupted by Dewey. However, the film's original teaser trailer featured an extended version of the rules scene which reveals that originally the third rule was supposed to be "Never, ever, under any circumstances assume the killer is dead." This referenced Randy's last line in the first Scream which stated that a killer always comes back to life for one last scare.

The lack of a third rule in the film's final cut was a deliberate in-joke by the crew, referencing the fact that it is impossible to ensure that a horror franchise will be successful.

Scream 3

Rules to succesfully survive the last chapter of a horror movie trilogy:

1. "You've got a killer who’s gonna be superhuman. Stabbing him won’t work, shooting him won’t work. Basically in the third one, you gotta cryogenically freeze his head, decapitate him, or blow him up."

2. "Anyone, including the main character, can die. This means you, Sid."

3. "The past will come back to bite you in the ass. Whatever you think you know about the past, forget it. The past is not at rest! Any sins you think were committed in the past are about to break out and destroy you."

Although, in the first few drafts, there was a fourth rule: "Never be alone" but was taken out because Gale immediately goes off alone afterwards.

Scream 4

Rules to successfully survive a horror movie remake: