This year’s Scream featured some of the most brutal violence the series has seen, with Ghostface’s reign of terror being showcased in various ways thanks to directors Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin. With one of the film’s more lavish deaths, audiences couldn’t help but notice there was a striking resemblance to the exact same performer’s death when they appeared in a movie by Quentin Tarantino, to the point that some fans thought this was an intentional move. The performer, however, recently pointed out that it was nothing more than a coincidence, even going so far as to confirm that the filmmakers considered other deaths for the character as to not draw the comparison.
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WARNING: Spoilers below for Scream
In Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Mikey Madison plays a member of Charles Manson’s cult who has a fateful run-in with Leonardo DiCaprio’s Rick Dalton. More specfically, a run-in with his flamethrower, which results in her dying amidst a flaming inferno. After her character is revealed to be one of the figures behind Ghostface, Madison’s Amber similarly gets set ablaze, as she frantically runs through the house, screaming as she’s engulfed in flames.
“I actually didn’t know that my character was supposed to be set on fire in the end,” Madison revealed to The Hollywood Reporter. “I thought that was supposed to be Jack’s [Quaid] character’s death because that’s how he died in the script they had given me. So when they told me, I was definitely like, ‘Huh, that’s a funny coincidence.’ But it wasn’t a specific choice on [the directors’] end in regards to me. They even debated changing my character’s death, but we ultimately just kept it in.”
She added, “I was just like, ‘Is this going to be a weird schtick?’ There’s not many young serial killer roles for women who die by fire, so it was a strange thing for me to be doing again. But I think it’s funny. The movie doesn’t take itself too seriously, and I think keeping it in was a good choice.”
The actor also confirmed that, as an homage to original director Wes Craven, the special effects makeup she wore after suffering her burns were meant to replicate the look of Freddy Krueger from A Nightmare on Elm Street.
“I think that was part of the design that they wanted,” Madison recalled of the effects. “The makeup and prosthetic team were incredible, and they created this really gruesome and sick burn on my face. The directors are the biggest horror fans of all time, so they’ll put in any kind of Easter egg that they can, especially when it’s also a tribute to Wes Craven.”
The new Scream is in theaters now, with a sequel confirmed to start shooting this summer.
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