Thirty years later, Drew Barrymore is answering another phone call from Ghostface.
Barrymore revisits one of horror’s most memorable opening scenes in a new commercial for Chase, once again finding herself on the receiving end of a mysterious phone call while dressed to resemble Casey Becker, her character from Wes Craven’s original Scream. This encounter turns out considerably better for her than the first one: the Ghostface behind the mask is Kevin Hart, and he’s more interested in talking about cash back than scary movies.
The spot deliberately recreates the setup of Scream’s opening sequence, right down to Barrymore’s familiar blonde bob. Hart calls her while wearing the Ghostface costume and asks a variation on a question that should immediately sound familiar to Scream fans: “Do you like cash back?” From there, the commercial abandons the threat of a grisly murder in favor of a running gag built around the Chase Freedom cash-back program.
The timing isn’t accidental. The campaign arrives as Scream approaches its 30th anniversary, with Craven’s original film having opened in December 1996. Barrymore’s appearance as Casey Becker became one of the movie’s defining moments despite lasting only through its opening sequence. Her murder also helped establish immediately that Scream wasn’t going to play by the rules audiences expected from a studio slasher movie.
For the new campaign, Chase wanted to tap directly into that recognition. “When something from your past suddenly shows up in a new way, it gets a reaction,” Chase Freedom general manager Wittney Rachlin said of the commercial, adding that the company wanted to create something viewers would recognize, talk about and share with other fans.
Barrymore has never completely left Scream behind. She has continued discussing Casey and the franchise over the years, and even made a vocal cameo in 2022’s Scream as the principal heard making an announcement over Woodsboro High School’s PA system. But seeing her back in Casey’s blonde hair with Ghostface on the other end of the phone is a direct trip back to 1996. This time, at least, she makes it through the phone call.
