In Scream 2, Randy Meeks famously lays out the golden rule of horror sequels: the body count is always bigger, the deaths are more elaborate, and everything is generally “bigger.” That rule applies perfectly to Ready or Not 2: Here I Come, a sequel that takes the sharp, contained premise of Ready or Not and expands it into something far bigger, louder, and bloodier. Directed once again by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, the filmmaking duo behind the original film and Scream 5 and 6, this follow-up leans into scale and spectacle. While it loses some of the gothic intimacy that made the first movie special, it compensates with inventive carnage, colorful villains, and another terrific performance from Samara Weaving.
The first film was essentially a pressure cooker. It trapped Grace inside a single mansion overnight as she was hunted by her new in-laws—a pack of entitled, hyper-wealthy elites convinced they must kill her as part of a twisted ritual. The sequel blows that premise wide open. This time, Grace discovers that the deadly game was never confined to the Le Domas family alone. Instead, powerful families across the world are part of a secret tradition that demands Grace’s death if they want to preserve their wealth and influence. If they fail, they risk losing everything.
Naturally, Grace has zero interest in participating in another deadly round of hide-and-seek. But when she learns that her younger sister Faith (Kathryn Newton) has also been marked for death, the situation changes. Protecting her sister becomes the driving force behind the film, and the emotional core that grounds all the chaos, especially as these two have been estranged for a while and there’s a lot of unresolved drama between them. While Grace was alone in and on the run in the first film, Ready or Not 2 is a two-hander with multiple modern scream queens at the forefront.
One of the biggest differences between the two films is the nature of the antagonists. In the original Ready or Not, the Le Domas family felt like exaggerated versions of real people—entitled rich elites whose privilege had warped their morality. In Ready or Not 2, the villains are more like full-blown caricatures. The film introduces a colorful array of wealthy killers, each more eccentric and over-the-top than the last.
That heightened tone works in the film’s favor. The movie clearly understands that it’s operating in sequel territory and leans into the absurdity. These characters are flamboyant, theatrical, and often hilariously self-justifying. They don’t see themselves as villains; they see themselves as people forced into “necessary” actions to preserve their status and families.
Two of the most memorable antagonists are the Danforth siblings, played by Sarah Michelle Gellar and Shawn Hatosy. Their characters represent a particularly ruthless branch of this secret elite society. Hatosy’s Titus Danforth stands out as the film’s most hateable villain, which is something the first movie didn’t always have. While the Le Domas clan was amusingly incompetent and morally warped, Titus is cold, calculating, and unpredictable in ways that allow him to be horrifyingly violent. Watching him square off against Grace and Faith adds an extra layer of tension to the story.
At the center of it all is Samara Weaving, who once again proves why she’s one of the most compelling performers working in genre filmmaking today. Her performance here is fantastic, particularly in the way she delivers dialogue and expresses Grace’s emotional exhaustion. Having survived the events of the first film, Grace now reacts with a mixture of disbelief, fury, and dark humor at the idea that this nightmare is happening all over again, especially because the movie takes place directly after the first one. Her line deliveries are razor-sharp, and her ability to convey raw panic, especially through those iconic, blood-curdling screams, remains unmatched.
Opposite her is Kathryn Newton as Faith, Grace’s younger sister. Newton and Weaving make for an interesting on-screen duo, largely because their acting styles are so different. Weaving is incredibly expressive and physically committed to every emotion Grace experiences. Newton, on the other hand, plays Faith with a more restrained, deadpan energy.
The contrast between them actually works well. Their relationship gives the film a strong emotional backbone as they confront unresolved issues from their past. The sisters carry lingering resentment and unspoken conflicts that slowly surface as they’re forced to rely on each other for survival. That dynamic adds depth to what might otherwise be a straightforward survival thriller.
From a structural standpoint, the film moves quickly. The script by Guy Busick and R. Christopher Murphy wastes little time reestablishing Grace’s life after the first movie before introducing the new threat. Within the first act, the rules of the expanded game are clear, the villains are introduced, and the hunt begins. Once it starts, the movie rarely slows down.
Another major shift is the scale of the action. The original film’s gothic horror aesthetic, with its candlelit hallways, creaking floors, and claustrophobic mansion setting, created a wonderfully tense atmosphere. That sense of confinement is largely gone here. Instead, Ready or Not 2 spreads its mayhem across multiple locations, giving the film a much bigger scope. The downside is that some of the atmospheric tension from the first movie disappears in the process. The mansion felt like a character in its own right, trapping Grace inside a nightmare. Without that contained setting, the sequel sometimes feels more like an action-horror hybrid than a pure horror thriller.
That said, the larger canvas allows for more elaborate kills, and the filmmakers clearly relish pushing the violence to new extremes. The movie delivers exactly what Randy promised in Scream 2: bigger deaths, more elaborate setups, and a steadily rising body count. It’s pure carnage candy. Every action sequence is designed to escalate the chaos, and the filmmakers maintain a strong sense of dark humor throughout. The violence is outrageous, creative, and often shockingly funny in the way it unfolds.
In the end, Ready or Not 2: Here I Come may not reach the same heights as the original film. It loses some of the gothic atmosphere and tight storytelling that made the first movie feel so unique. But what it offers instead is an entertaining, high-energy sequel that embraces its own absurdity while still keeping the emotional stakes grounded in the relationship between Grace and her sister. It’s bigger, bloodier, and more chaotic—exactly what a sequel like this should be.
Most importantly, it reminds us once again why Samara Weaving is such a thrilling presence in horror. Even when the world around her descends into madness, she keeps the audience fully invested. And sometimes, that’s all a horror sequel really needs.
SCORE: 8/10
As ComingSoon’s review policy explains, a score of 8 equates to “Great.” While there are a few minor issues, this score means that the art succeeds at its goal and leaves a memorable impact.
Disclosure: ComingSoon received a screener for our Ready or Not 2: Here I Come review.