When teen slasher movies was at risk of dying out, Scream came along to give the genre a big boost of energy. The 1996 Wes Craven film brilliantly took a meta approach to the familiar story of young teens being stalked by a masked killer. The characters were aware of similar horror films and even identified the rules laid out for them in movies like Halloween and Friday the 13th.
The film spawned three sequels that varied in quality. However, each film did manage to effectively keep audiences guessing about who the masked Ghostface killer was. Sometimes the reveal was a clever and shocking reveal, other times it was quite underwhelming. Revisit the unmasking moments from each of the sequels with this ranking of the best Scream killers, from worst to best.
7 Roman Bridger (Scream 3)
Scream 3 is widely regarded as the worst of the series so it makes sense that it also features the series' lamest villains. The third film largely takes place on the set of the new "Stab" film, the fictional franchise based on the murders in the original Scream. Roman Bridger (Scott Foley) is introduced as the meek director of the film before it is revealed through some ridiculous retconning that he has a connection to Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell).
Roman is actually the forgotten lovechild of Sidney's mom, and he is revealed to be the one who convinced the original Scream killers, Billy and Stu, to kill Sidney's mom. This is the kind of lazy writing that happens when a franchise goes on for too long. Roman's motivations are far too forced and clumsy while the technology that allows him to mimic anyone's voice is just dumb.
6 Charlie Walker (Scream 4)
Scream 4 also doesn't get a lot of love from fans, which is a bit unfair. However, the film does have some weak points, including the secondary killer Charlie Walker (Rory Culkin). Charlie sort of seems like the stand-in for Randy Meeks in the pseudo-reboot story, but it is eventually revealed he has been one of the Ghostface killers all along.
While the quiet geek turning out to be a killer could have been a fun twist for this series, the real problem with Charlie is that he has no motivation. He just seems to be a puppet for the real mastermind, and is disposed of with about as much thought. Also, his murder of Kirby (Hayden Panettiere) for apparently waiting too long to make her move on him is just uncomfortable.
5 Mickey (Scream 2)
Scream 2 might not match the brilliance of the first film but it is a pretty solid horror sequel. The movie cleverly plays off the plot of the original to keep audiences guessing as to who the killer might be this time around. The first killer reveal of Mickey (Timothy Olyphant) is admittedly a little underwhelming.
The problem with Mickey as a villain is that we hardly even know him. He is introduced as a friend and classmate of Sidney and Randy but never really gets an opportunity to stand out. When he is revealed to be the killer, you have to take a moment to remember who he is. However, he is redeemed a bit for the mind games he plays with Sidney, successfully convincing her that her boyfriend is the real killer. Also, his motivation to become famous by blaming the movies for turning him psycho is a good bit of commentary.
4 Mrs. Loomis (Scream 2)
While the reveal of Mickey as Ghostface is not as thrilling as it could be, the second killer being Billy Loomis' mother (Laurie Metcalf) is a pretty solid twist. Metcalf is seen throughout the film as a rival reporter to Gail Weathers (Courteney Cox) but we never really get the sense that she has anything to do with the main plot.
Her reveal is also a nice homage to the original killer of Friday the 13th, Jason Voorhees' mother. Mrs. Loomis is also given a bit of a bump thanks to Metcalf's great performance as a deranged and vengeful mother. She really sells the craziness in her eyes in those final scenes.
3 Stu (Scream)
One aspect of the original Scream that doesn't get enough credit is the brilliant reveal that the masked killer is actually two people. It is one of those reveals that makes you rethink and recontextualize many of the scenes that came before. And the secondary killer Stu (Matthew Lillard) is one of the most fun characters to dawn the Ghostface mask.
Stu's motivation for joining the killing spree is also one of the most disturbed, as he seems like a bored psycho who wanted to have some fun. Once he is revealed to be the killer, Lillard goes all in with his madman performance, hamming it up it such an entertaining way.
2 Jill Roberts (Scream 4)
Scream 4 might have gotten a bad rap from fans who saw it was a lazy attempt to reboot the franchise. However, like how the original film subverted the slasher genre, Scream 4 subverts the typical reboot. And one of the best examples of this is how Jill Roberts (Emma Roberts) is meant to be presented as the new Sidney Prescott but is actually revealed to be the new Ghostface.
Jill is front and center for much of the movie, which hides the reveal really well. Her motivation is also quite compelling as she craves the kind of attention Sidney got from the murders and hopes to take her place as the sole survivor of a masked killer.
1 Billy Loomis (Scream)
The idea that the boyfriend is the killer was nothing new in the horror genre at this point, and was in fact a bit of a cliché by the time Scream came along. But the movie found a clever way of reversing that cliché, making Sidney's boyfriend Billy (Skeet Ulrich) seem like such an obvious choice that you stop suspecting him.
The movie creates questions about Billy very early in the film but continues to throw doubt and reasons why it could not be him. All the doubt builds to the point that his reveal as the killer is a genuine surprise. And his obsession with horror films as his template makes him seem all the more deranged.
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