Wes Craven’s Scream (1996) was lauded for being one of the scariest and bloodiest films of its time, initially given an NC-17 rating by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). After much contrition, the film would go forward, but the deaths would still come in full force. One can’t help but recall Casey Becker when thinking back on the most gruesome of deaths in the franchise’s history, let alone the first film.
Because there are two killers revealed at the film’s end, there are some questions as to who actually killed the victims. For the purposes of this article, we will analyze the film’s plot, character motivations, and where the characters are at any given time to best confirm who the killer was or present the most educated guess possible.
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6 Casey Becker & Steve Orth - Stu Macher
Dimension Films
The beginning of the film sees Casey Becker preparing for a lovely stay-in movie night with her boyfriend, Steve. She receives a call from an unknown number and proceeds to talk with a man about their mutual interest in scary movies. Things quickly take a dark turn as this mystery caller reveals he knows more about Casey than he had been letting on. The night of terror would begin in full force when it’s revealed Casey’s boyfriend has already been incapacitated and tied up, all a part of this man’s game.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
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While it’s not confirmed in the film whether it was Billy or Stu to have murdered Steve & Casey, there are some context clues to pick up on. Both boys stated that they had motivations of revenge as well as their psychoses. Casey had dumped Stu before the film’s events and began dating Steve shortly after. While Billy likely had a hand in capturing Steve, Billy is seen visiting Sidney around the same time the murders took place, giving him an alibi. Add in the killer’s innate knowledge of how to intrigue Casey under the guise of being a stranger, as well as the aggressive nature in which he stalks her, and one can deduce that Stu was the one who murdered his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend.
5 Principal Himbry - Stu Macher
After Billy is accused of being the Ghostface killer and locked up, Stu puts into motion a plan to help absolve his friend of any suspicion. First, using his voice modulator, Stu would call Sidney, indicating that Sidney had pointed the finger at the wrong person. With the knowledge that the killer is still out there, Principal Himbry would confiscate any paraphernalia related to the killer and cancel school, so students could remain safe. Unfortunately for Principal Himbry, he would not be left alone among the school’s hallowed halls.
The killer would sneak into the office and kill the principal, hiding the body long enough to set it up in a gruesome display that would later distract most of the party-goers in the film’s third act. While Billy’s whereabouts during this period are unknown, another killer is stalking Sidney & Tatum through town. This is likely Billy, as he has become obsessed with killing Sidney, and sees Tatum’s constant presence as a threat to his plans. Add in that the idea of the principal being hung up at the football field sounds similar to how Casey was left for her parents, and signs point to Stu having murdered the principal.
4 Tatum Riley - Billy Loomis
Tatum is murdered during her boyfriend Stu’s house party. The events of the party include multiple red herrings with seeds being planted that even Randy Meeks could be the killer, with his whereabouts being unknown during Tatum’s murder. As Tatum goes to the garage to get more beer for the party, the killer follows her inside. Mixed with liquid courage, Tatum asks if the killer is Randy and the killer shakes their head no. While first-time viewers may think this is a mocking gesture, it’s an honest answer that Tatum would not appreciate.
Billy is likely the killer as the level of aggression displayed with previous murders is missing here. Whereas Stu would have tackled Tatum to the ground and stabbed her repeatedly, Billy is more sadistic and likes to play with his prey. As Tatum tries to escape through the cat door in the garage door, instead of simply stabbing her when she is stuck, the killer activates the door lifting Tatum and watching her neck get snapped. Leaving her to be found, Billy would act fast and change into his regular clothing to make a late appearance at the party.
3 Kenny - Stu Macher
Kenny, Gale Weather’s cameraman, was another unfortunate victim. Dragged by Gale in hopes of breaking the story of a lifetime, Kenny helped set up a camera system that would show them what was going on inside the party from the relative safety of their news van. Other than a troublesome 30-second delay, the duo were in the clear. But things start to turn after Gale leaves with Deputy Dewey to investigate a car.
The majority of partiers leave to see Principal Himbry’s body. However, a heavily-intoxicated Randy stays behind. After Sidney narrowly escaped an attack from the killer (Stu) after witnessing Billy be stabbed (corn syrup for blood) Sid seeks shelter in the news van with Kenny. As Kenny & Sid see the killer go after Randy, the killer becomes distracted and walks out the door. Kenny would remember the delay too late, as when he exited the van, Stu was already there to kill him on the path to Sidney.
2 Stu Macher - Sidney Prescott
As Stu & Billy reveal their whole plan, they become distracted by the attempted interference of Gale Weathers and lose track of Sidney. Adding to Stu’s problems is that while trying to frame Sidney’s father, Billy had sunk the knife too deep into Stu, and Stu began suffering symptoms of heavy blood loss. After briefly incapacitating Billy, Sidney & Stu would start to struggle.
Stu would tackle Sidney and prove stronger, having pinned her to the ground. Sidney desperately fights back as he taunts her, claiming to have had a thing for her. First, biting his hand, so he’d release his grip; then grabbing a vase and smashing it over Stu’s head. As Stu laid in a daze, Sidney would shove the box television set onto Stu’s head, breaking it over his skull and electrocuting him. While there were initially plans to reveal Stu lived through the ordeal (you can even spot him in Scream 2 (1997) in the background of a party at the 35:37 mark, sporting blonde hair), tragic real-world events would lead to the writers changing their mind. As it stands today, Sidney Prescott has indeed killed Stu Macher.
1 Billy Loomis- Sidney Prescott
That’s right. As far as on-screen kills are concerned, Sidney Prescott has a higher body count than Billy Loomis. During Sidney’s initial struggle with Billy, she would strike him from a closet, wielding an umbrella. The umbrella would prove to be a dangerous weapon as, during filming, it would reopen a wound that Skeet Ulrich had incurred from a prior open-heart surgery. After Billy recovered and struck a blow on Randy, he struggled with Sidney, only for Gale Weathers to shoot Billy.
Gale doesn’t get credit for the kill shot, though. Using his expert knowledge of horror movies, Randy predicted that Billy would recover from the insurmountable injuries he had suffered and strike out for one last scare. Sidney was at the ready when Billy did just that and shot him in the head to ensure he would not get back up.
