The horror film genre has many hair-raising tropes, and coming in alongside the famous jump scares, gory scenes and disturbing themes are the notorious Scream Queens. 

Scream Queens are usually – as suggested in their name – prominent actresses across the genre, who react to their frightening situations with an onslaught of shrieking. 

The original Queen is often considered to be Fay Wray, due to her very loud performance as Ann Darrow in King Kong (1933). 

Classic examples now include Marilyn Burns in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), Betsy Palmer in Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street with Heather Langenkamp. 

It even inspired a Fox horror series of the same name in 2015, starring Emma Roberts, Jamie Lee Curtis, Abigail Breslin, Lea Michele and Keke Palmer.  

But despite kicking off the trope, the Scream Queens had problems from the outset – as Wray later admitted the label had limited her career by typecasting her into the role. For Wray, it was Scream Queen for life, or nothing. 

Scream Queens have often been cliched and over-sexualised in the past, portraying women as helpless and panicked with little agency and character of their own. 

But now there are new Scream Queens on the block, giving a modern twist to the genre. 

From Jenna Ortega and Mia Goth in the X horror series to Florence Pugh and Sydney Sweeney, each modern Scream Queen also seems to be accompanied by a thrilling life behind the scenes. 

Here, FEMAIL takes a look at the contenders up for the title of modern Scream Queen.  

Jenna Ortega

At just 21 years old, Jenna Ortega appears to be the film industry’s newest horror sensation. 

Netflix horror-comedy series Wednesday, in which Ortega stars as the title character Wednesday Addams, has propelled the former Disney star to a worldwide sensation. 

She has even become an executive producer, and has made no secret of her love of the horror genre, even saying ‘it is everything’ to her.  

Speaking to People magazine recently, she said: ‘I would do horror until I die. It’s the best. 

‘I love horror [movies] because they encapsulate everything. They can be romantic, they can be funny, they can be dramatic, they can be scary. They’re adrenaline-inducing and ignite passion in people, even scaredy-cats. 

‘I think there’s just something really, really beautiful about horror and profound.’

Jenna has long been open about her love of all things ‘disturbing,’ and she even once admitted that she feels ‘connected’ to ‘serial killers’ and ‘monsters’ – something she believes has helped her land roles.

Even though Jenna herself feels she ‘can’t claim’ the title of ‘scream queen’, her filmography would suggest otherwise. 

Even her minor role playing Joe Goldberg’s young neighbour Ellie Alves in Netflix’s You series can be seen as her starting to dip her toe into horror – as stalker Joe ruthlessly murders other characters throughout the series. 

Ortega’s main venture into all things horror came with films Scream and X (both 2022), which follows the journey of young filmmakers seeking to make an adult movie at a property in rural Texas. 

The story turns to horror when people around them keep turning up dead.  

Despite keeping her personal life relatively private, Jenna herself has faced a series of thrilling scandals since her Wednesday role. 

In 2023 she received immense criticism after she slammed the creators of Wednesday, admitting that she changed many of the lines while filming the show because she thought that the original script ‘didn’t make sense.’

Most recently, she found herself in the wake of another scandal after an X-rated part of the new flick Miller’s Girl featured her getting intimate with actor Martin Freeman – who is 31 years her senior – left viewers extremely ‘uncomfortable.’

In the flick, Jenna, played 18-year-old student Cairo Sweet, while Martin took on the role of her teacher Jonathan Miller.

The film saw the two get tangled in a very complex and inappropriate relationship, that kicks off when Cairo writes a sex story as part of a creative writing assignment given to her by Jonathan.

Raunchy scenes from this story are then played out on screen by Jenna and Martin – leaving viewers in uproar over the co-stars ‘uncomfortable’ 31-year age difference.

The sudden attention from Wednesday shone a fierce spotlight on Jenna’s personal life – and resulted in her facing immense scrutiny over some of the things she said and did.

Most notably, the star was branded as ‘toxic’ and ‘entitled’ after she criticized the writers of Wednesday and admitted that she had changed many lines while making the show because she felt they didn’t ‘make sense.’

During an appearance on the Armchair Expert With Dax Shepard podcast in March 2023, she said, ‘I don’t think I’ve ever had to put my foot down more on a set in a way that I had to on Wednesday.

‘When I first signed onto the show, I didn’t have all the scripts. I thought it was going to be a lot darker.

‘When I read the entire series, I realized, ‘Oh, this is for younger audiences.’ It wasn’t… I didn’t know what the tone was, or what the score would sound like.’

Jenna added that she decided to revamp the script because she felt it was ‘boring’ and audiences wouldn’t like it.

She continued, ‘Her being in a love triangle? It made no sense … You can’t lead a story and have no emotional arc because then it’s boring and nobody likes you.

She is extremely private about her personal life online, especially regarding romantic relationships. 

Fans previously speculated about her chemistry with her Wednesday co-star Hunter Doohan, who plays Tyler, but he is married to husband Fielder Jewett. 

In 2018 she was linked to Asher Angel – with whom she dressed in a couple’s costume as Ariana Grande and Pete Davison for a Halloween party. 

Jenna also appeared in Jacob Sartorius’s music video Chapstick, where they kissed – but shortly after he started dating Millie Bobby Brown. 

Mia Goth

British born actress Mia Goth has been working in horror for most of her career.  

Though she ventured outside the box by starring as Harriet in an adaptation of Jane Austen’s Emma in 2020, horror seems to be where Goth shines, and screams, best. 

A Cure For Wellness (2016) was a supporting role that began her venture into the genre, while Infinity Pool (2023) spurred her into a mainstay in the horror world. 

Goth plays protagonist/antagonist duo Maxine Minx and Pearl in the X series, with a prequel dedicated to her character’s villain origin story.  

MaXXXine — the third and final installment of the X trilogy — is set in 1980s Los Angeles amid an evolving adult film industry.

The story follows Maxine Minx, the sole survivor of the massacre in X, as she continues her journey in Hollywood to become a famous actress.

Goth herself has been in an on-off relationship with Shia LeBeouf for many years, having first met while starring in Nymphomaniac in 2012. 

The pair dated for several years before they tied the knot in Las Vegas in 2016, although they went on to split up in 2018.

The Transformers star was subsequently linked to Margaret Qualley and FKA Twigs, who later filed a lawsuit against the actor for various forms of alleged abuse.

Shai and Mia reconciled in 2020, and it was revealed that the latter was pregnant with the couple’s child in 2022.

The X star gave birth to Isabel in March of that year.

Like her other Scream Queen stars, scandal appears to have followed Goth as her horror career has grown. 

In January it emerged that James Hunter – an extra on the third and final installment of the X trilogy was suing Goth for battery amid claims she ‘bullied’ and ‘intentionally kicked’ him in the head while he was playing a bloody corpse. 

He has now claimed Goth followed him and called him a ‘big baby’ before saying ‘nobody will believe you because you’re nothing’. 

Speaking to DreadCentral, Hunter recounted the alleged incident saying: ‘On the fourth or fifth take, I’m laying on the left side of my ear. 

‘I hear her; she runs by me, and I hear her boot clamp down right next to my ear. And I thought, oh, well, it’s dark out. She’s not really getting a beat on exactly where I’m laying.’

But after it happened again, Hunter claims Goth said to him: ‘Nobody will believe you because you’re nothing. Get the f*** off my set, you big baby.’

He claims to have written down the exact words on a nearby call sheet so that he would remember them.  

Hunter says he believes Goth was insinuating no one would believe him if he said that her kick was ‘done purposefully and with malice.’

A24 said in a statement to DailyMail.com: ‘The claims made in the complaint are simply not true. As this is in active litigation, we cannot say more at this time but continue to vigorously defend Mia and the entire filmmaking team against these extremely baseless allegations.’

Goth said to The New York Times recently about the case that she ‘could not address the lawsuit filed by an extra against her, West, and A24, alleging that she intentionally kicked him on the set of Maxxxine. 

‘She did say that she was ‘very grateful for A24’s support’.

DailyMail.com has contacted representatives for Goth and A24 for comment previously. 

Lupita Nyong’o 

Lupita Nyong’o may have an Academy Award for her role as Best Supporting Actress in 12 Years A Slave (2013), but her claim to the title of Scream Queen is also a strong one. 

The Kenyan-Mexican actress, 41, who was named the world’s most beautiful woman in 2014 by People, has starred in horror films Us (2019) and A Quiet Place: Day One (2024). 

In psychological horror film Us, Nyong’o plays mother-of-two Adelaide, who is attacked by a group of doppelgangers known as The Tethered, genetic clones created by the government to control the population. 

She also plays doppelganger Red in the creepy screenplay, written and directed by Oscar winner Jordan Peele.  

Nyong’o is the lead character in A Quiet Place as Sam, who begins the film as a cancer patient in a hospice, furious that her life is to end too soon. 

Like the previous films, an apocalypse strikes and a deadly alien invasion begins. 

They are blind, but have defined hearing, meaning the characters can’t make any noise, leading to a tense and gripping situation where the characters try to keep entirely silent.

Aside from her acting work, Nyong’o has recently made headlines for her relationship with Dawsons Creek’s Joshua Jackson. 

DailyMail.com reported back in March that the two are ‘exclusive and serious’, according to insiders. 

Joshua had split from his wife Jodie Turner Smith, with whom he shares a daughter Juno, back in October last year after she cited ‘irreconcilable differences’. 

At the time, Joshua was said to have been left heartbroken – but was photographed with Lupita just weeks later.  

‘Josh and Lupita are exclusive and serious,’ an insider told DailyMail.com exclusively. ‘They get each other, and she has been such a calming force for him.

‘They are in love and Josh feels saved. That might sound extremely corny but after his relationship with Jodie, who he thought was it for him, finding love with Lupita has been a revelation. 

‘It is everything to him that he has been able to find love again. He is very excited for their future.’

Last month, Jodie finally broke her silence on the new relationship, telling The Cut: ‘Good for them. We need happiness in order to peacefully co-parent. I’m trying to get us to the Gwyneth [Paltrow] and Chris Martin level.’

‘I truly hope they’re happy and that it benefits us as a family.’

The Anne Boleyn actress went on to explain what co-parenting with Joshua is like and how she’s adapted to life as a single mother.

‘I just have to do everything that I can to set Juno up to win and to peacefully co-parent with someone whom I once loved very, very much,’ she told the outlet.

‘Peace is what’s needed right now. Grace is what’s needed right now. Love, empathy, compassion. I’m trying to be all those things and have faith that when I’m all those things, I will see that reflected back toward me,’ she finished.

Prior to Joshua, Lupita split from her ex-boyfriend Selema Masekela last year – and credited her cat Yoyo for healing her heart. 

10 months after she announced her romance with Selema, Lupita revealed that their relationship had come to a sudden end and she posted a vulnerable announcement.

The heartbreaking prose detailed her vast pain and determination to ‘run into the shadows’ in the wake of the break-up, which came just hours before she was spotted putting on a cosy display with newly-single Joshua.

Her statement read: ‘There are much more important things going on in the world right now, and my thoughts are with those who are deeply suffering.

‘At this moment, it is necessary for me to share a personal truth and publicly dissociate myself from someone I can no longer trust…

‘I find myself in a season of heartbreak because of a love suddenly and devastatingly extinguished by deception.’

Maika Monroe

American actress Maika Monroe was established as a scream queen back in 2014, starring in It Follows and thriller The Guest in the same year, and working in the horror genre ever since. 

But it’s only in the past year that Monroe has become one of horror’s most talked about Queens, following her performance in Longlegs. 

Longlegs follows ‘an FBI agent, in pursuit of a serial killer, uncovers a series of occult clues that she must solve to end his terrifying killing spree,’ per IMDB.

The thriller stars Hollywood vet Nicolas Cage, Alicia Witt and Blair Underwood.

The chilling blockbuster stars the aforementioned Maika as an FBI agent in pursuit of a serial killer.

Set in the 1990s, during her investigation, she uncovers a ‘series of occult clues that she must solve to end his terrifying killing spree.’ It already has been hailed as ‘sinister’ and ‘unsettling’ by early viewers.

The haunting trailer for Longlegs features a series of clips from the movie – showcasing its grisly crime scenes, shocking acts of violence and otherworldly screams.

As her horror career has blossomed, so Maika’s personal life has been met with growing talk, having dated two very high profile men in recent years.  

The actress dated Stranger Things actor Joe Keery from 2017 to 2023. 

She is now dating real estate developer Dalton Gomez, none other than Ariana Grande’s ex-husband. 

Gomez and the blonde beauty’s relationship was made official in October of 2023 during a date night in Los Angeles, just three months after his split from Ariana Grande was made public.

After just a year of dating, Dalton and Ariane got engaged in December of 2020 and tied the knot in May of 2021 – however they split in March 2023. 

A source close to the ex-couple told People that their relationship came crashing when Grande moved to London to act in the two-part film adaptation of Wicked.

The split was kept out of the public eye until the 7 Rings singer began romancing her Wicked co-star Ethan Slater.

Florence Pugh

Florence Pugh has many genres under her belt, from her role in Marvel’s Black Widow to Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of classic Little Women. 

Pugh, 28, starred in horror suspense film Malevolent in 2018, and as Dani Ardor in Midsommar (2019). 

She stars alongside Jack Reynor as an American couple who are drawn into a violent cult in Sweden, which spirals out of control as the film progresses, blurring the gap between what is and isn’t real. 

Jack’s character Christian had intended to break up with Dani, who is still reeling from the death of her family, and their relationship is already unsteady as the film begins. 

Florence’s personal life was at its most hair-raising during her stint playing Alice in Olivia Wilde’s Don’t Worry Darling (2022) with Harry Styles. 

From the outset there was drama, due to rumours of pay disputes and claims that Harry and Florence shared an off-screen kiss during filming. 

Sources claim Pugh and Wilde’s later fall-out stemmed from the initial chemistry shared by Pugh and her screen husband before he became romantically involved with Wilde. 

An insider told The Sun at the time: ‘Harry and Florence had chemistry from the off, which translated incredibly well on-screen. One night they had a bit of a snog, all very light-hearted and a bit of fun, and that was that.

‘It was being gossiped about by a couple of members of production, otherwise no one would have known. Harry was very much single at the time and Florence had separated from Zach Braff, although she’d kept the split quiet to — ironically — avoid headlines.

‘There was no cheating or misbehaviour from anyone. However, later on, Harry and Olivia started spending more time together — sneaking off for coffees, hanging out in one another’s trailers, and sharing small, routine intimacies.’

MailOnline contacted representatives for Styles, Pugh and Wilde for comment at the time. 

Things were made worse by a leaked video message from Wilde to Shia LeBeouf, who was initially intended to play Harry Styles’s character before reportedly being fired by Wilde. 

In the video, Wilde was heard saying: ‘I am heartbroken and I want to figure this out. You know, I think this might be a bit of a wake-up call for Miss Flo, and I want to know if you’re open to giving this a shot with me, with us.

‘If she really commits, if she really puts her mind and heart into it at this point and if you guys can make peace – and I respect your point of view, I respect hers – but if you guys can do it, what do you think? Is there hope? Will you let me know?’

‘Miss Flo’ then skipped the press at Venice Film Festival in September 2022 and failed to acknowledge director Wilde on the red carpet.  

Florence dated actor and filmmaker Zach Braff between 2019 and 2022. 

During their relationship, the couple — and particularly Florence — experienced a torrent of abuse on social media due to their 21-year age gap, though the Little Drummer Girl actress defended her right to choose to be with Zach. 

She reportedly dated photographer Charlie Gooch for a year, but split last October amid reports her ‘busy schedule’ was getting in the way.   

Elisabeth Moss

Moss, 41, is best known for her roles in AMC’s Mad Men and Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale. 

In Handmaid’s, she plays protagonist June (Offred) in the patriarchal dystopia set in Gilead, based on Margaret Atwood’s 1985 novel. 

Though Handmaid’s clearly has horror elements to it, she more obviously plays Scream Queens in The Invisible Man and Jordan Peele’s Us. 

In Us, which is also filled with zombies, burnings and throat-slittings, Moss attacks her own face with a pair of scissors.

The Times called her a ‘horror film Queen’ following the release of the film, confirmed by Moss herself in an interview with the paper. 

Speaking of the infamous scissors scene, Moss said: ‘That was the reason I signed up for the movie. To do that scene. 

‘It was one of my favourite scenes when I read the script, and one of my favourite scenes to do. It’s crazy, super-weird and scary. And such fun.’

The actress, who was briefly married to Fred Armisen from 2009 to 2011, is now pregnant with her first child, although she hasn’t revealed who the father is.  

US Weekly reported in 2011 that Moss split up with her husband of two years over her religious Scientology beliefs.

A source told the magazine at the time, ‘They had issues… Her religion was as important to her as their marriage, if not more. He could not get with it.’

However in a 2014 interview with New York Magazine, Moss said that her marriage to Armisen was ‘extremely traumatic and awful and horrible.’

She added that the idea that the ending of her marriage had something to do with Scientology was ‘100 percent made up.’

In 2012, Moss moved on with Australian cinematographer Adam Arkapaw after meeting on the New Zealand set of the mini-series Top of the Lake.

The relationship was confirmed by DailyMail.com at the time but they split in 2015.

She has attracted much controversy over the years for being a Scientologist, especially as some see it as clashing with the message from Handmaid’s. 

But she has consistently defended her beliefs, even saying it has helped her to become a ‘skilled communicator’, crediting it with helping her career. 

‘It’s not really a closed-off religion. It’s a place that is very open to, like, welcoming in somebody who wants to learn more about it,’ she told the New Yorker previously. 

‘I think that’s the thing that is probably the most misunderstood.’

The actress revealed her godfather was long-time Scientologist Chick Corea and how her father, Ron, played in a jazz band with Scientologist leader David Miscavige’s father, Ronald.

The ‘Mad Men’ star credited Scientology with teaching her the communication skills that she uses in her acting career.

Moss said that communication was ‘Probably one of the No. 1 basic things that I grew up learning and grew up using and use every day.’

During an appearance on Andy Cohen’s ‘Watch What Happens Live’ in March 2020, Moss was asked about tabloid rumors that she was primed to enter into an arranged marriage with Scientology mainstay Tom Cruise.

Moss joked, ‘I actually was confused and also mainly got texts from people being like, ‘I didn’t know, why didn’t you tell me? And just confusion from my friends, but mainly poking fun at it ’cause obviously they knew it wasn’t true.”

Sydney Sweeney 

Sydney Sweeney is best known for her roles in Euphoria, The White Lotus, and recent romantic comedy Anybody But You. 

Arguably, signs of horror are present in each, as Euphoria features several almost unwatchable scenes, while sinister dealings are ever-present in The White Lotus (though it’s hard pressed to find any horror in Anyone But You).  

This year the 26-year-old produced and starred in Immaculate, trying a Scream Queen role for the first time. 

Sweeney is a young nun named Sister Cecilia who miraculously falls pregnant after moving to Italy. 

US Weekly said the role ‘proves she was born to be a Scream Queen’, and it will come as no surprise to see her take on further roles in the future. 

In 2023 Sweeney became engaged to businessman Jonathan Davino, but they try to keep their relationship out of the public eye. 

The pair have also worked together in the entertainment industry. While Sydney starred in Anyone But You, she also co-produced the film with Davino through her production company Fifty-Fifty Films. 

But while filming, Sydney and her co-star Glen Powell were hounded by scandalous speculation that they were having an affair, while both being in relationships with other people. 

They fuelled speculation by flirting with each other and even joking that they ‘love’ each other. 

Around the same time as the two filmed the movie, Powell split from girlfriend Gigi Paris, further adding to the speculation of a romance between him and Sydney. 

But they have since confessed that they purposely allowed the rumours to flourish to help the film perform well at the box office. 

Powell pointed out that the gambit ‘worked wonderfully,’ as the movie was a smash hit, and he added to the New York Times: ‘Sydney is very smart.’