As we prepare for Scream 6 next week, we thought it would be fun to rank the Ghostface killers from Scream 1-5!
Scream is one of my favorite franchises of all time, so I am so hyped to rank the worst to best killers!
9. Roman Bridger (Scream 3)
Roman was boring, the end! I just found him lacking any depth. A long-term grudge is a boring motivation. It may not have helped that Scream 3 was my least favorite movie with my least favorite killer. He barely exists in the movie, he’s not memorable and he doesn’t even interact with Sydney before unmasking! Much like the franchise itself has done, it’s best that the fanbase just pretend this guy never existed.
8. Jill Roberts (Scream 4)
What’s there to say about Jill? She is an interesting character, that can’t be denied but she tries too hard to act like Billy Loomis and that itself is a movie sin in my book. Jill wasn’t a complete surprise to be one of the killers but same time I didn’t pinpoint it to her so at least there was that. Her monologue is drawn out, she’s full of herself, and she disappointed me. I know so many are gonna disagree with me because I see so much Jill love but I just couldn’t get into her.
7. Richie Kirsch (Scream 5)
Oh, Richie, not only are you handsome but you’re very entertaining. Fun lines, solid comedic timing, and Jack Quaid was made for the role…But I groaned when he was found to be the second killer. His motivation is really, really bad (in a cringy way, not in a fun one). Richie being Ghostface was predictable and telegraphed, and his “know it all” personality just sucked the fun out of EVERYTHING. The more and more I sit with this movie the stronger my hatred grows for it…Poor Dewey…you deserved to die in a better film.
6. Charlie Walker (Scream 4)
Charlie, Charlie, Charlie you almost had me till you “killed” Kirby because she didn’t want to love you till the lost moment. Charlie spends one-third of the movie as a less-interesting sidekick to Robbie, one-third as a less-interesting love interest for Kirby, and the final third of the movie as a less-interesting henchman for Jill. His Ghostface reveal does pack a punch though (or more so a stab in the gut) in surprise. But that’s literally the only positive I have about this guy. He does a piss-poor Stu impersonation and has some of the weakest motivation of any killer in a franchise where motive already tends to be pretty thin.
5. Mickey Altieri (Scream 2)
I have the same complaints about Mickey as every Scream 2 fan: he’s literally absent from the movie for the 40 minutes before his reveal. Instead of being surprised when he unmasks himself, you’re left thinking: “Oh yeah, he’s in this movie.” He just barely manages to not be a complete Stu rip-off. I think the best thing about him is I actually didn’t expect him, his motivations sucked but he’s not completely terrible but that may only be because he played off his fellow Ghostface very well.
4. Amber Freeman (Scream 5)
Amber was extremely fun. She’s definitely the brawn of the team. I can’t say she was as big a surprise as people like Stu but she still wasn’t on my list of killers for most of the movie. She’s brutal and I absolutely loved her reveal. It was hilarious when she just threw away her performance when she realized Sidney or Gale didn’t believe her. At the end of the day though, Amber was only really interesting post-Ghostface reveal and hardly did anything of note beforehand.
3. Mrs. Loomis (Scream 2)
Oh, Debbie, I love you. She was a wonderful homage to Pamela Vorhees in Friday the 13th. Her motive! *chefs kiss* Laurie Metcalf plays the erratic killer very well. You feel the weight of some history between Sidney and Mrs. Loomis thanks to the fantastic performances by both actors. Her Debbie Salt persona may not have been very exciting, but it made for a surprising reveal
2. Stu Macher (Scream)
There are many reasons why Stu works as a killer, but it’s mostly Shaggy’s…I mean…Matthew Lillard’s performance that really sells it. The reveal of there being TWO Ghostfaces was shockingly monumental! Nothing that came before was like Billy and Stu, and there may never be anything like it again. Matthew didn’t have to go that far and throw himself into the role that hard but I’m so glad he did! I still to this day laugh when he got hit with the phone. Possibly the most quotable character in the series (“Surprise, Sidney!”, “It’s a SCREAM, baby!”, “I’m feelin’ a little woozy here!”, “You hit me with the phone, DICK!”, “My mom and dad are going to be so mad at me…”)
1. Billy Loomis (Scream)
Just like it wasn’t a suprise that he was the killer, it should be no suprise that he’s my number one. The one who started the series and won over my heart. His chaotic energy, the way you think ‘Is he? Is he not?’ I’d say the boyfriend reveal may feel tired now, but Scream created the trope. Thanks to a masterful performance by Skeet Ulrich, Billy has always felt like the most well-rounded killer in the series.