Scream is a 1996 American slasher film written by Kevin Williamson and directed by Wes Craven. The film stars Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Drew Barrymore, and David Arquette. Released on December 20, 1996, Scream follows the character of Sidney Prescott, a high school student in the fictional town of Woodsboro, who becomes the target of a mysterious killer known as Ghostface. Other main characters include Sidney's best friend Tatum Riley, Sidney's boyfriend Billy Loomis, Billy's best friend Stu Macher, film geek Randy Meeks, deputy sheriff Dewey Riley, and news reporter Gale Weathers. The film combined comedy and "whodunit" mystery with the violence of the slasher genre to s ... more on Wikipedia