Scream- Conventions Turned

The Scream films have gained popularity over the years because they have told a horror story in an interesting form. They reveal the codes and conventions of horror yet are still able to shock the audience whilst they are on the tangent on believing they know how the film will end. This process of revealing the rules have been consistent throughout all of the 4 films. Examples of the rules being revealed are shown below: 
  


Scream: 

Scream 2: (1) the killer has got be super human - stabbing or shooting won't be enough to finish him off (2) anyone, including the main character, can die (3) the past will come back to haunt you. Detective Mark Kincaid, "All I know about movie trilogies is in the 
third one, all bets are off". That's why it says the rules will be broken.
This franchise of  Scream has been well recognised for many years and one of the reasons is simply due to it being unlike typical horror films, it has been able to provide an original telling of a story that is gripping for an audience member whilst still remaining in the category of slasher horror. By revealing the rules it creates the audience expectation that they will witness the acts being committed and thus drawing in a crowd that adores horror.