Marlon Wayans Responds to Critics of ‘Scary Movie 6’ Reviews and Celebrates ‘White Chicks’

The Wayans Brothers have never been favorites among critics, and Marlon Wayans has made it clear that he has no plans to change that. With ‘Scary Movie 6’ hitting theaters on June 5, marking the franchise’s first installment in 13 years, the comedy icon is ready to tackle the conversation about its Rotten Tomatoes reception, turning the dialogue into a celebration of his entire body of work.

The ‘Scary Movie’ franchise has amassed nearly $900 million globally throughout its run, with the original film alone grossing over $270 million worldwide, making it one of the most commercially successful comedy series in Hollywood. This commercial success has always stood in stark contrast to critical opinions, a tension that runs deep across the Wayans catalog, and Marlon is now addressing it more directly than ever.

The latest spark came when Wayans took to social media to share a post highlighting his films’ Rotten Tomatoes scores alongside a pointed statement: “We don’t make movies for the critics, we make movies for the people who want to laugh and have fun. ‘White Chicks’ has a 15% on Rotten Tomatoes and it was an amazing job. All these movies are classics.” The post included a screenshot of the ‘Scary Movie’ Rotten Tomatoes page, which shows the film at a 27% Tomatometer score, while its audience score tells a different story, sitting at 70% based on over 1,000 verified ratings.

‘White Chicks,’ directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans, holds a 15% Rotten Tomatoes score, with the site’s consensus describing it as a “scattershot comedy that’s silly and obvious.” Despite this, the film has gained a reputation as a cult classic, with many fans calling for a sequel. The buddy-cop comedy grossed approximately $113.1 million at the box office on a $37 million budget, a commercial success that critics largely failed to anticipate.

This isn’t the first time Wayans has defended his films against critical reviews. After his Jordan Peele-produced horror-thriller ‘Him’ received a disappointing score on Rotten Tomatoes last year, Wayans shared Rotten Tomatoes scores for several of his past films, arguing that many of his cult classics have been reevaluated positively over the years. In that post, he stated that “some movies are ahead of the curve” and that “innovation is not always embraced and art is to be interpreted and it’s subjective,” encouraging fans to watch the film for themselves instead of relying on outside opinions.

Fan reactions in the comments largely supported Wayans, with one user declaring that “‘White Chicks’ is an unmatched cinematic masterpiece that people will still be talking about in 50 years,” while another acknowledged that although the criticism of ‘White Chicks’ is staggering, ‘Scary Movie 6’ still had genuine issues. The divide between popular enthusiasm and critical reception has become a defining characteristic of the Wayans brand, one that Marlon is clearly embracing rather than avoiding.

Despite the mixed reviews, ‘Scary Movie 6’ opened to a $56 million debut at the domestic box office, earning a 71% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. It appears that audiences are once again voting with their wallets and laughter rather than their Tomatometers. Whether you believe critics have consistently misunderstood Wayans’ comedy or think the scores are justified, the question of where ‘White Chicks’ truly fits in the comedy canon is certainly worth discussing in the comments.