Anna Faris Thought Hollywood Was Putting Her 'Out to Pasture' Before “Scary Movie” Reboot Changed Everything

Bailey RichardsTue, June 2, 2026 at 8:41 PM UTC

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Anna Faris in April 2026
Credit: Greg Doherty/Getty -

Anna Faris said she thought her career was winding down before she got the call to join the new Scary Movie

"I had been coming around to the idea of Hollywood sort of putting me out to pasture," said Faris

Faris previously told PEOPLE she was "shocked" to get the call, and described the latest Scary Movie as a "victory"

Anna Faris was settling into life after Hollywood — then an old friend came calling.

That friend was Cindy Campbell, the bumbling heroine of the Scary Movie franchise, who teams with Brenda Meeks (Regina Hall). Faris, 49, says she had nearly come to terms with stepping away from acting before being asked to bring Cindy out of retirement.

"I had been coming around to the idea of Hollywood sort of putting me out to pasture. And that was okay," she told Entertainment Weekly alongside Hall, Scary Movie stars/co-writers Marlon Wayans and Shawn Wayans, and director Michael Tiddes.

Faris got the invite to star in the latest installment of the horror parody franchise — the first in 13 years and the first featuring her, Hall and the Wayans brothers in 20 years — in early 2025, she told EW. The call came at an emotional moment, just after her home burned down in the Palisades Fire.

Anna Faris as Cindy in 'Scary Movie 6'
Credit: Quantrell Colbert

Once she got to set, she could not stop expressing her gratitude, Faris said in the interview.

“With the house burning down, there was a lot of taking stock. So to have this opportunity to thank them — I got to thank them every day,” she told the outlet. “They were probably really annoyed with me.”

On the future of the Scary Movie franchise after the sixth film, the actress told EW, "I don't think it dies. I don't know, at least not for me.”

“I said this when Marlon called, and this is maybe arrogant for me to say, but the town always underestimated and never really understood Scary Movie,” Faris said. “There's something electric about what the Wayans Brothers have. There is something that's very human in them, and they bring out something that makes people root for them.”

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Anna Faris in May 2026
Credit: Eloisa Sanchez/Getty

“I'm just really happy to be part of this journey,” she told EW. “I'm just honored to go along for the ride.”

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Scary Movie was the first major film in which Faris was cast. Getting the call to join the latest, Tiddes-directed entry in the beloved franchise, Faris previously told PEOPLE, she was “shocked and immediately thrilled.”

The sixth movie, she teased, is a “celebration for the Wayans brothers.” She also described the experience of filming it as “healing” and the project itself as “a victory.”

Anna Faris and Jayne Trcka in 'Scary Movie'
Credit: Chris Large/Dimension Films

“For all of us to be back together, for me, it felt like such a victory," she said of the sixth installment. "It didn't matter what happened, how the movie was received. At the moment, it felt so good for me personally. It's like the cherry on top that audiences are so excited to see it. It's a really special time in my life. I feel grateful."

Plus, she told PEOPLE, “It's a little healing in the sense that we got to be back together again. That is, for me, a personal celebration because I got to thank them. I'd never thanked them properly.”

Scary Movie is in theaters Friday.

on People

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”