Anna Faris has revealed why she returned for the upcoming Scary Movie 6 after being absent from the fifth instalment. Speaking on Josh Horowitz's Happy Sad Confused podcast, the actress explained that she felt undervalued in the franchise and was not invited back for the fifth film, which holds a dismal 4% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Faris said she was initially surprised to land the role in the first Scary Movie due to her lack of comedy experience, and struggled with imposter syndrome for years. She noted that despite being top of the call sheet, she was not featured on the first poster and was not the highest paid, calling it a 'humbling' start.
The actress revealed that Marlon Wayans contacted her in February 2025, telling her 'we got our franchise back'. The Wayans brothers had lost control of the series after the second film due to contract disputes, which Marlon attributed to Harvey Weinstein and his brother Bob. The studio continued without them for the third, fourth, and fifth films, but the brothers did not watch those entries.
Faris expressed that returning for the sixth film made her feel valued in a way she never thought possible. She told Entertainment Weekly: 'I felt valued in a way that I never thought the franchise would give me. It felt very, very, very meaningful and powerful to me to be able to look at Marlon in particular and be like, 'Dude, I love you. Your family gave me something huge.''
The new Scary Movie currently holds a 26% score on Rotten Tomatoes, but fans have taken to social media to defend the film, with one viral tweet comparing a 20% rating in the franchise to a 12-minute standing ovation at Cannes. The film parodies recent horror hits such as Sinners, Get Out, and Weapons.
