Ghostface Didn’t Gut the Franchise, Sidney Did

Every Scream film has Sidney Prescott and two dead killers. Two facts that have become repetitive and reduce the Scream franchise to a poorly planned murder mystery.

In 1996, Wes Craven created a self aware horror film. Scream (1996) follows a group of friends in Woodsboro while a series of murders take place. The film poked fun at the victims and the poor decision making demonstrated in the horror genre. Randy

Meeks, an overzealous film geek, clues us in on the rules of the horror movie and rules are broken to subvert the audience's expectation. Prescott is the star along with Ghostface, the homicidal murderer. The end of Scream reveals that there are two killers instead of one, both with each a different motive and personality. Billy Loomis’, one of two killers, main target has been Sidney this whole time. Stu Matcher, the other killer, seems to be motivated by the movies and Billy’s hatred towards his current girlfriend and her mother's adulterous ways. I don’t really see how Sidney is to blame for Billy’s mother abandoning him but I'm in therapy. Sidney is among the few survivors in Scream (1996) that is equipped to be beat Ghostface and survives by fighting rather than playing dead.

I empathize with Wes' attempt at passable script(s). I acknowledge that rebooting a slasher film is quite difficult. Most of the original characters are dead. But, what makes the Scream franchise particularly difficult is that the killers are dead as well. In order for the movies to work, you have to find a new motive for each movie and it makes it particularly hard when the victim is the same each time.

In Scream 2 (1997) and Scream (2022), there are similar motives. There is an attempt to make a sequel in real time by Stab fans. The Stab franchise is the Scream franchise in the Scream universe. Stab is first introduced in Scream 2 (1997) where we see our first victims are murdered at a Stab premiere. The victims call out for help but the people at the premiere think they are joking. Only one of the Scream 2 (1997) killers wanted to make a sequel yet it's unlikely he’d even seen Stab. It’s possible that Mickey read Gale Weathers' book, but how would he even know if the movie was good? How would it be worth it for him? If they were copycat killers, it doesn’t make sense why Sidney would be involved. This is particularly apparent in Scream (2022). Prescott comes back to Woodsboro after she finds out Ghostfase is back. Prescott actively looks for Ghostface and inserts herself into the situation. The Scream (2022) victims aren’t even the same. They are targeting victims that were related to the original victims in the town of Woodsboro, so anyone who’s already been visited by Ghostface, theoretically should be fine.

While I take issue with almost every new addition to the franchise, I do think Scream 4 (2011) is almost perfect. I actually prefer it to the original because I find male rage boring. I can’t sympathize with a guy with mommy issues but I can sympathize with a girl that has been overlooked her entire life.

At the beginning of Scream 4 (2011), there are multiple opening scenes. At a point where I had grown tired of the question “What’s your favorite scary movie?" in the raspy machine generated voice, I began to be thrilled by the possibility of the never ending Stab universe. I didn't know when the Stab universe was going to stop and Scream 4 (2011) was going to begin. While Prescott is a part of this plot, and perhaps is still the star, it makes sense and it's interesting due to her close connection with one of the killers, her niece Jill Roberts. Like in previous films in the franchise, there are attempts to mimic some of the fan’s favorite kills and manipulate some of the elements proven in other Scream movies. The final slaughter scene shifts locations, from the Stabathon, a marathon of the main movies based off of Scream, to Kirby’s house to fix on the true targets. This facilitates a false ending and allows Scream to not show any of the plot points past the first Stab, disappointing all Scream fans that wanted to see the Stab film that features time travel.

Scream 4 (2011)’s biggest deviation from the franchise is convincing us that for a period of time, one of the killers had survived, Jill Roberts. Roberts kills the other killer, Charlie Walker, and stabs Sidney. Roberts frames her ex boyfriend to receive a similar fame afforded to Sidney. Before stabbing Sidney for the final time, Roberts gives a speech about wanting to become Sidney. In order to look like a victim, Roberts stabbed her self in the shoulder, used her dead ex boyfriend to rip her hair out and flung herself into two different glass surfaces.

But, all of that meticulous planning was for nothing because Sidney’s pulse was never checked. Jill stabbed her twice and I refuse to believe Jill was stupid enough not to check if Sidney was dead. Jill framed someone else AND led a little incel film geek on so she could get fame. Jill and Charlie filmed the murders to be able to immortalize their fame as "sole survivors". Jill has been plotting this since she was born but Sidney always has to have the last laugh and kill the killer. For all the good things Scream 4 was, it was practically ruined by the ending. Jigsaw gets to decapitate his victims for 7 films, why can’t we have the same Ghostface for two films? Let the fans have their ending.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhkVFSXcgs8

So here’s an alternate ending for Scream 4: Sidney Prescott dies. We all grieve the angel of death and Jill Roberts takes her place. Ghostface after Ghostface put in all this work just for the most annoying person in the franchise to live. I for one, am sick of scream queens. Surprised Sidney? Not everyone is devastated about your departure from the franchise.