When Shawn and Marlon Wayans returned to the Scary Movie franchise, they did so on their own terms.

The brothers, who helped create the iconic horror parody franchise alongside Keenen Ivory Wayans, reunited to write and produce Scary Movie 6, marking the first time in 18 years they had come together to write an original script for the franchise. As Blavity previously reported, Rick Alvarez also produced the film, while Keenen Ivory Wayans returned to direct.

Their return also came after years of Marlon Wayans publicly speaking about how the family lost control of the franchise following a Miramax deal with former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. For the brothers, ownership and creative control weren’t just business considerations. They were personal ones.

Shawn And Marlon Wayans Open Up About Having Ownership And Creative Control This Time Around

When asked what it meant to return to the franchise with ownership and creative control, Shawn Wayans offered a straightforward answer.

“It means, they can’t fire us this time,” he joked in an interview with AFROTECH™ Culture.

Marlon Wayans explained that having ownership ensures creators remain connected to the projects they build.

“I think it’s important because, like Shawn said, it’s ensuring that you’re tethered and tied-in to the things that you create,” Marlon said. “These are like your babies as an artist and nobody should ever have the right to kick you off of your project.”

While he acknowledged that losing that connection to the franchise wasn’t a great experience, he said returning for a sixth installment is ultimately about giving audiences what they loved about the original films.

“What feels great is coming back and doing part six and just returning people back to these movie theaters to laugh,” he said. “That’s what we Wayans love: laughter.”

Why The Wayans Brothers Didn’t Return To Protect A Legacy

The original Scary Movie became a cultural phenomenon when it debuted in 2000, breaking records as the highest-grossing R-rated horror film at the time and becoming one of the most successful films directed by a Black filmmaker.

Given the family’s longstanding impact on comedy through projects such as In Living Color, the brothers were asked whether returning to Scary Movie carried any pressure to uphold the Wayans legacy while also pushing it forward.

“I don’t think we really think about it in that way,” Shawn said.

Marlon agreed, joking that focusing on legacy would only create unnecessary pressure. The brothers laughed about the idea of worrying that a new film could somehow tarnish the family name. Instead, Shawn said they approached the project the same way they’ve approached their work throughout their careers: by focusing on what makes them laugh.

“Our approach is, hey, we got something fun. We got something cool,” Shawn said. “Who can we put in it that’s really funny? How can we make this the funniest experience for the movie-going audience?”

Why Social Media And TikTok Haven’t Changed Their Approach To Comedy

While comedy has evolved significantly in the age of TikTok and social media, Marlon said the Wayans family’s comedic voice remains as relevant as ever.

“I think we have a brand of humor that’s consistent and it’s multi-generational,” he said.

According to Marlon, many of the viral comedy trends circulating online today are simply younger audiences rediscovering concepts the Wayans family popularized decades ago.

“A lot of the videos that they’re doing are videos that we did 30 years ago,” he said.

Shawn added that creators are often remixing material and styles that the family helped pioneer years ago.

As far as the Wayans brothers are concerned, the formula hasn’t changed: make something funny, and trust the audience to find it.

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