Scream 4 (15^th Anniversary) [4K Ultra HD]

Director: Wes Craven

Cast: David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox

Release Date: June 9, 2026

A Review By: Kevin Lovell

Release Rating: 8.5/10

Synopsis:

Debuting in blood-chilling 4K! Scream 4 amps up the carnage in horror master Wes Craven’s hall-of-mirrors fourth Scream installment. It’s the anniversary of the original Ghostface murders, and Sidney (Neve Campbell) has returned to Woodsboro to promote her new book about surviving the masked killer. But Ghostface still haunts Woodsboro – slashing through Jill’s (Emma Roberts) circle of friends, outwitting Sheriff Dewey (David Arquette), taunting tough-skinned reporter Gale (Courteney Cox)…and relentlessly stalking Sidney, Ghostface’s ultimate prize.

‘Scream 4’ rejoins survivor Sidney Prescott as she returns to Woodsboro years later to promote her new book and is faced with a new string of Ghostface killings that seem to be targeting her teenage cousin Jill and her friends in order to get to her. As the bodies once again begin to pile up, current Sheriff Dewey Riley and now wife Gale must try and uncover the truth behind the latest batch of attacks if they hope to stop the new killer before more bodies fall, while Sidney will once again have to step into survivor mode to protect herself and her family.

Directed once again by horror legend Wes Craven (Scream 1-3, A Nightmare on Elm Street) from a screenplay by series creator Kevin Williamson (Scream 1-2, Teaching Mrs. Tingle) Craven does a marvelous job guiding along the fourth installment which would also mark his final film as director. The cast this time around includes 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 as the voice of Ghostface, with nearly all offering perfectly solid and capable performances throughout.

‘Scream 4’ is an absolute blast and while many may disagree with me it’s become my favorite sequel in the franchise over the years. As clever and witty as it is brutal, bloody and tense, it marked a marvelous return to form after the somewhat lackluster third installment that has everything fans desire. The smart meta commentary that worked so perfectly in the first two films returns to dissect a new decade’s horror trends, while introducing a new generation of Woodsboro teens to serve as red herrings and fodder for Ghostface and finding a nice balance to allow these new stars a chance to shine without taking away from the legacy characters who each still play a prominent part in the tale.

At long last, franchise fans can complete their 4K collection as ‘Scream 4’ slashes its way onto 4K Ultra HD courtesy of Lionsgate available in both a widely available standard 4K Ultra HD release (which is the version I was sent over for review) as well as a Lionsgate Limited 4K UHD Steelbook which features exclusive new extras that are not included on this wide edition. The 4K release offers a truly spectacular full Ultra High Definition presentation with Dolby Vision and HDR10 that has the fourth installment looking better than ever and the great video presentation is splendidly complemented by a new Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 compatible) soundtrack that combined should have fans incredibly thrilled. A nice collection of previously released extras are also included on both discs and the Blu-ray edition also features the new presentation and Atmos soundtrack.

It should be addressed that there have been some reported issues with the Dolby Vision presentation on some systems which I was able to see on my non OLED TV that has an annoying shift in brightness levels occurring throughout, although if you’re experiencing this issue one way to eradicate it is by reverting the disc to the HDR10 option, although many seem to be understandably disappointed even so. Fortunately no matter what HDR version cooperates better with your system the presentation is outstanding and the marvelous new video and audio offerings make this well worth adding to your collection if you’re a fan that’s been waiting to complete your 4K Scream set (at least for now).

VIDEO:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of ‘Scream 4’ features a full 2160p Ultra High Definition presentation with Dolby Vision and HDR-10, presented in its original 2.39:1 Aspect Ratio. The video presentation delivers a clean, sharp and gorgeously detailed presentation from start to finish that holds up throughout and never suffers from any notable issues (although many have reported Dolby Vision issues with constant brightness shifts throughout that I was also able to see firsthand on my LED 4K TV which is undeniably disappointing but can be rectified by changing to the HDR10 option). Detail is outstanding throughout and everything from characters, backgrounds and bloody death scenes look sharp and immaculate, while the Dolby Vision HDR  and HDR10 enhance many elements such as the purple of Gale’s top, blood and other bits of clothing along with more, and black levels are rewardingly deep, rich and problem free. Overall, this is a phenomenal Ultra High Definition presentation that looks nearly flawless and only exceeds expectations; aside from the Dolby Vision issues on some setups it’s perfect.

AUDIO:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release features a Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 channel compatible) soundtrack. Please note that this review pertains solely to the Dolby TrueHD 7.1 audio presentation. This multichannel soundtrack is spectacular in its own right and it delivers a clean, crisp and hard hitting audio presentation that improves upon the previous Blu-ray’s already stellar DTS-HD track. It repeatedly takes advantage of all seven available channels in order to send everything from music, action effects and screams to random noises and crowd chatter, plus quite a bit more zipping throughout the various speakers whenever fitting, and all while making certain that any dialogue or other audio elements that might be occurring simultaneously remain clean and fully intelligible. Overall, this is a wonderful Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 compatible) soundtrack that sounds marvelous at every turn and shouldn’t disappoint in the slightest.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The widely available standard 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of ‘Scream 4’ features numerous previously released extras although the new bonus features included on the Lionsgate Limited Steelbook are not included on this standard 4K edition. Included on this National 4K UHD release is an ‘Audio Commentary with Director Wes Craven and Cast Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, and Neve Campbell’, in addition to the Behind the Scenes Featurette ‘The Making of Scream 4’ (running approximately 10 minutes in length), plus a collection of ‘Deleted and Extended Scenes’ from the movie which includes an Alternate Opening and Extended Ending (running approximately 26 minutes in length altogether), and a ‘Gag Reel’ (running approximately 9 minutes). Also included are a few archival extras not included on the original Starz/Anchor Bay Blu-ray including ‘EPK B-Roll’ (17 minutes), ‘EPK Soundbites’ (33 minutes) and ‘Junket Interviews’ (19 minutes), along with ‘2 Trailers’ (4 minutes) and a ‘TV Spot’ (30 seconds).

*Please note that the above images are taken from the Remastered Blu-Ray disc included in the 4K UHD Combo Pack and resized. They do not represent the quality of the 4K Ultra HD disc itself and will additionally suffer quality loss as a result of .jpg compression. Larger versions of each image can be viewed by clicking on the image. All images and content included on the 4K UHD & Blu-Ray release are the property of their respective owners.

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Release Rating: 8.5/10

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‘Scream 4’ is Now Available to Own on 4K Ultra HD & Lionsgate Limited 4K UHD Steelbook from Lionsgate

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You can purchase ‘Scream 4’ on 4K UHD at Amazon HERE!

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