It’s a scream, baby! As the entire horror universe already knows, Scream is one of the most successful slasher franchises in cinematic history. Mostly led by final girl Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), each film introduces us to new characters, all of whom immediately make the list of prime suspects. But that doesn’t mean legacy characters are always in the clear either. Everyone is a suspect when it comes to Ghostface.
With on-screen slashings come injuries and, of course, deaths. Some were expected, but some left a wound in fans’ hearts now that the franchise has extended into seven movies.
Hollywood Life breaks down all the major legacy deaths in the Scream franchise here.
Tatum Riley — Dies in Scream
Tatum, Sidney’s best friend, gets crushed by a garage door in the first film. The confident was played by Rose McGowan.
Randy Meeks — Dies in Scream 2, Comes Back in Scream 3
Randy, the franchise’s most passionate horror guide to surviving a slasher movie, was killed off in Scream 2 when Ghostface grabs and stabs him in a van. The character was played by Jamie Kennedy, and he returned to Scream 3 for a brief video of Randy warning Sidney how to survive the next Stab film.
Billy Loomis — Dies in Scream, Comes Back in Scream, Scream VI
Billy was one of the two original killers from the first movie. Although he tells Sidney and Stu that his so-called “movie” is “scarier” without a motive, he reveals he wanted revenge against Sidney’s deceased mother, Maureen Prescott, for having an affair with his father. Billy comes back in 2022’s Scream and Scream VI in the form of hallucinations by his biological daughter, Sam Carpenter (Melissa Barrera).
Stu Macher — Dies in Scream, Comes Back in Scream 7
Stu is killed off by Sidney at the end of Scream after smashing his face with a TV. Played by Matthew Lillard, he returns in the form of an AI version of himself in Scream 7.
Cotton Weary — Dies in Scream 3
Cotton, who was falsely framed as Maureen Prescott’s murderer, is living a better life in Scream 3 until Ghostface stabs him in his own home. The character was played by Liev Schreiber.
Roman Bridger— Dies in Scream 3, Comes Back in Scream 7
Roman is the franchise’s only solo killer. After revealing to Sidney in Scream 3 that he is her half-brother and that he was the architect behind Billy’s killing spree, she kills Roman while he’s still in the Ghostface costume. Roman returns in another version of himself in Scream 7. The character is played by actor Scott Foley.
Judy Hicks — Dies in Scream (2022)
Judy is introduced in Scream 4 as the town’s Deputy Sheriff. She comes back in 2022’s Scream after unsuccessfully trying to save her son, Wes, from Ghostface’s wrath. She was played by Marley Shelton.
Dewey Riley — Dies in Scream (2022), Comes back in Scream 7
Former Sheriff Dewey Riley is first introduced as a deputy sheriff in the first film, who falls in love with Gale Weathers. He is the older brother of Tatum Riley, who dies in the first movie. After surviving four movies of Ghostface, he is unfortunately stabbed to death by the killer in 2022’s Scream years after his divorce from Gale. But he returns in another form in Scream 7. Actor David Arquette has played the character since 1996.
