Scream Soundtrack: Composers, Songs and Albums for Every Film

Marco Beltrami scored five of the seven films in the Scream soundtrack story, and Brian Tyler scored the other two. Beltrami is credited on Scream (1996), Scream 2 (1997), Scream 3 (2000) and Scream 4 (2011), all directed by Wes Craven, and returned for Scream 7 (2026), directed by Kevin Williamson. Tyler scored Scream (2022) and Scream VI (2023), both directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett.

The first two albums are song collections. "Scream: Music from the Dimension Motion Picture" has 11 tracks and came out on TVT Soundtrax on December 17, 1996, while "Scream 2: Music From the Dimension Motion Picture" has 15 tracks and followed on Capitol Records on December 2, 1997.

Scream 3 is the first film with a separate score release. Beltrami's "Scream 3" album, 20 tracks on Varèse Sarabande, arrived on February 29, 2000, and its cue titles include "Here We Go Again", "Cotton Gets Picked", "DoppleGailer", "Mother's Watching", "Dewey Mobile" and "Ghost Attacks". The song album "Scream 3" (18 tracks) came from Wind-up on January 25, 2000.

Scream 4 also split in two, with both releases dated April 12, 2011. "Scream 4: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" (12 tracks) came from Lakeshore Records, and the 21 track score album "Scream 4: Music From the Dimension Motion Picture" carries cues such as "You're Not Real", "Dewey in the Morning", "Which Closet?" and "You Are the Message".

Tyler's "Scream: Music From The Motion Picture" has 24 tracks and was released by Varèse Sarabande on January 7, 2022. Its best known cues by title are "New Horizons", "Rules to Survive", "Would You Like to Play a Game", "History Repeats" and "Suspects, Rules, and Requels". For Scream VI, "Scream VI: Music from the Motion Picture" runs to 38 tracks on Paramount Music (released March 10, 2023), opening with "Scream VI Suite" and including "Something Red", "Warmer Colder", "Bodega Terror" and "Stalking the Aisles".

Beltrami's "Scream 7: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" is a 24 track score album from Lakeshore Records, released on May 22, 2026. The cues people look for are "The Magnificent Seventh", "Ghostfan", "ScarFaceTime", "Ghostface vs Family" and "Gale Force".

If you are following the Scream movies in order, you will hear the composer change at the fifth film and change back at the seventh. Scream 8 is in development, and no release date has been announced.

The signature songs of the Scream films run from Alice Cooper's "School's Out" in 1996 to Don Toliver's "Creepin" in 2026, and "Red Right Hand" by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds appears in five of the seven films. Seven songs were written for their films: "Is This the End" by Creed for Scream 3, "Still Alive" by Demi Lovato for Scream VI, and five tracks for Scream 7.

Scream (1996). "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" by Gus Black plays softly in the background while Sidney and Billy talk about their relationship, and "School's Out" by Alice Cooper plays after Woodsboro High School closes. The soundtrack album, released by TVT Soundtrax, also carries "Red Right Hand", "First Cool Hive" by Moby, "Whisper to a Scream (Birds Fly)" by Soho and "Better Than Me" by Sister Machine Gun. The album opens with "Youth of America" by Birdbrain and follows it with "Whisper" by Catherine, while "Artificial World (Interdimensional Mix)" is credited to Julee Cruise and The Flow, and "Bitter Pill" is by The Connells.

Scream 2. The 1997 sequel brings back "Red Right Hand" and adds "Scream" by Master P and Silkk the Shocker, "Dear Lover" by Foo Fighters, "Help Myself" by Dave Matthews Band and "Rivers" by Sugar Ray. The character Derek sings "I Think I Love You" (the Less Than Jake version) in one scene.

Scream 3. "What If" by Creed plays from a stereo during the opening sequence, as Cotton Weary drives home and Ghostface calls to taunt him, before Ghostface kills Christine and Cotton. "Is This the End", also by Creed, was written for the film and plays over the end credits.

Scream 4. The 2011 soundtrack album carries "Something to Die For" and "Yeah Yeah Yeah" by The Sounds, "Bad Karma" by Ida Maria and "Run for Your Life" by 6 Day Riot.

Scream (2022). "Just Us" by DJ Khaled and SZA plays over the title sequence while Sam takes prescription pills and talks with Richie. "Red Right Hand" plays outside a bar as Vince turns toward flashing headlights and encounters Ghostface, and "The American Scream" by Alkaline Trio plays as a school announcement cancels classes. The end credits open with "Fall Out of Love (Scream 5 Version)" by Salem and Carlie Hanson, followed by "I Don't Want to Talk" by Wallows.

Scream VI. "In My Head" by Mike Shinoda and Kailee Morgue plays over the title sequence after Ghostface kills Jason. "Still Alive" by Demi Lovato was written for the film and carries the final moments of Sam and Tara into the end credits. Party tracks include "Blow the Whistle" by Too $hort and "Walkin" by Denzel Curry, "October Passed Me By" by girl in red follows Sam out of a therapist's office, and "Same Squad" by P-Lo plays from a phone as Sam and Tara spot someone in a Ghostface mask on the subway.

Scream 7. "Criminal" by Jessie Murph plays as Ghostface walks away from a house fire and the title graphic appears. "The Kill" by Stella Lefty covers a transition as Tatum leaves home and Sidney reaches a coffee shop, and "Rearranging Scars" by Sueco plays from a car pulling up, driven by Ben. "Creepin" by Don Toliver opens the end credits, followed by "Twisting the Knife" by Ice Nine Kills and Mckenna Grace.

Which songs return across the series? "Red Right Hand" appears in Scream (1996), Scream 2, Scream (2022), Scream VI and Scream 7, where it backs an outdoor montage as Tatum meets Chloe at a closed restaurant. Moby's "First Cool Hive" also returns in Scream 7, playing as Robbie Rivers begins a news report after Tatum kills Jessica.

Our picks: the best songs in the Scream films (opinion)

• "Red Right Hand" by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds: in my opinion the most dependable choice in the saga, and the Vince scene in Scream (2022) gives it the best stage.
• "School's Out" by Alice Cooper: perhaps the cheekiest placement in the series, arriving right after Woodsboro High closes.
• "What If" by Creed: it plays during a drive home while Ghostface taunts Cotton, which keeps the Scream 3 opening tense.
• "Is This the End" by Creed: a song written for Scream 3 gives the end credits a proper sendoff.
• "Still Alive" by Demi Lovato: written for Scream VI, and carrying the final moments of Sam and Tara into the credits is a smart choice.
• "Criminal" by Jessie Murph: it gives Scream 7 a confident entrance over the title graphic.

To hear any of these in place, stream the films: start with where to watch Scream or the full list of Scream movies.