We’re seven movies in now and, like Friday the 13th, Scream has contributed some truly memorable and unique character offings to the annals of scary movie cinema. And, today, we’re going through all seven movies and picking out the ones that haven’t been seen anywhere else. But, again, we’re going specifically for creativity here, so just being iconic in general (usually via set-up or pacing of the kill) doesn’t quite get an offing an entry. For entrance, Dewey’s shooting out the glass panels as Ghostface chases Jennifer Jolie in Scream 3 doesn’t count because her getting stabbed isn’t quite “creative.”
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The same goes for the phone game and pursuit of Casey Becker in Scream and Cici Cooper in Scream 2. Both scenes are note-perfect examples of tension escalation and without a doubt iconic additions to horror film history, but they’re not quite creative enough to make the cut, as it were (though Casey getting hanged from a tree while disemboweled came mighty close). You might be wondering if the death of a Ghostface could count. Indeed it could and did. You can’t have Matthew Lillard get his head squished by a TV and not include Ghostface deaths. Spoilers for Scream 7 follow.
7) Stu Macher in Scream (1996)
Stu Macher is the most likable Ghostface, which is an odd thing to say considering he gutted a young woman who broke up with him and, in general, is someone who takes human life. But he’s still played by Matthew Lillard, so it’s hard to watch him die.
But what a way to go. He was already going to die when his partner, Billy Loomis, cut him too deep (Stu was always going to be a fall guy), but it’s Sidney Prescott who gets the final blow. And, as mentioned, it’s by throwing a big, boxy ’90s TV down on his head. He always had a thing for her but suffice to say she wasn’t interested.
6) Phil Stevens in Scream 2
Sure, Phil gets a blade, which isn’t uncommon in Scream. But to the ear? You can just feel his pain.
But, while where Phil gets stabbed is important to this death’s inclusion on our list, it’s not the only reason. It was also a novel idea to have Ghostface in a stall, whisper giggling to himself (it was Mickey Altieri) until Phil leans close, then jamming the knife all the way through the stall. Setting was a factor here, in other words. We almost got a legitimate bathroom set piece in the first film, then this one delivered.
5) Dewey Riley in Scream (2022)
Naturally, the gut punch aspect of Dewey’s death helps this scene stay in the viewer’s mind, but if we were going by gut punch alone, Randy’s death would be on this list. No, what gets Dewey a spot is just how horrific his offing really is.
Ghostface (Amber Freeman) is seemingly down, but then Dewey goes back to put a bullet in the killer’s head, as is tradition. But Ghostface leaps up, puts one knife in his back and one in his front and just lifts him off the ground, moving both blades until he’s ultimately gutted. Such an important legacy character deserved a memorable and, sadly, brutal, departure and this one fits the bill.
4) Hannah Thurman in Scream 7
Mckenna Grace is one of the biggest, most likable new additions to the Scream line-up, and she sure doesn’t last long. As soon as we see her elevated via stunt rigging, we get the sense that’s how she goes.
That’s a correct assumption, and it leads to an unbearable feeling of helplessness for Hannah and the audience that really works. Was this the franchise’s first gutting? No. But it was the first gutting that had Ghostface really taking his time, getting some sort of sick enjoyment out of it. Scream 7 may not be the best of the franchise, but it’s arguably at the top of the heap when it comes to kills. To that point, Hannah’s isn’t even the best the film has to offer.
3) Amber Freeman in Scream (2022)
Plenty of the Ghostface killers go out in the most brutal way possible. Scream 2‘s Mickey Altieri, for instance, is shot about a dozen times. Then there are the two Ghostface deaths in the 2022 soft reboot.
Richie Kirsch is eviscerated by Samantha Carpenter, who slits his throat, stabs him in the face and mouth 22 times, and shoots him thrice. But it’s Amber Freeman who takes the violence cake. Oscar winning actor Mikey Madison is torched (three years after she faced the same fate in Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood) via lighter fluid and a stove and is shot three times in the chest. But that isn’t enough for her, as she takes one final run at the protagonists and gets a bullet to the head courtesy of Tara Carpenter.
2) Lucas Bowden in Scream 7
The death of Lucas Bowden is the most impactful scene of Scream 7…at least once you find out who killed him. That would be his mother, Jessica.
It’s already one of the most brutal kills of the franchise, as Jessica drags him throughout a bar, positions him next to the corpse of Chloe Parker, picks him up, and jams the sharp top of a beer tap all the way through the back of his head. She didn’t even try to make it slow for her own son. As for creativity, this is the top for the seventh film. The only reason it’s not quite number one on our list is because it’s technically reminiscent of a kill from the original My Bloody Valentine.
1) Tatum Riley in Scream (1996)
One of the most iconic scenes of the entire franchise, fan-favorite Tatum’s fight against Ghostface (Billy Loomis) is unbearably tense. No matter how many times you watch, you’re desperate for her to get through that little garage doggy door.
But she doesn’t. Instead, Ghostface raises the garage door, resulting in her head getting squished up against the mechanism and ceiling. We get a swift shot of her head flattening and, later, Sidney looks in horror as her best friend hangs lifeless, her body weight still not having caused the door to fall back down. This is also a great kill because Stu’s party continues to go on even as she’s out there dead. We cut back into the house but we’re still thinking about poor Tatum.
What do you think is the most unique Scream death? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
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