The One Moment In Each ‘Scream’ Movie When The Killers’ Plan Would Have Fallen Apart

Even the biggest of Scream superfans have to admit that much of what happens in the movies is improbable. That’s a complaint you could have about the horror genre in general, really. Everything has to go so meticulously to plan for these storylines to work out. For how many times Ghostface gets shot, stabbed, or falls down a flight of stairs, it’s downright magical how the killers never die partway through the movie. While we all still love the Scream franchise, there are still some plot holes in each movie that mean the killers’ plans never really would have worked in the first place. Spoilers ahead!

The Killers’ Love for Fake Blood in Scream (1996)

Randy isn’t the only horror expert in the original Scream. Billy and Stu are movie buffs. They not only love horror films, but they’re also obsessed with how they were made. In the final act, Sidney sleeps with Billy during the party. Right after they’ve finished, Ghostface runs into the room and stabs Billy in order to give him an alibi (as well as a sweet reveal). Later, he explains that they used the same sort of corn syrup blood that was used in the movie Carrie.

At that point, Billy is covered in fake blood. The bed upstairs is covered as well, and the sticky blood substitute has probably been tracked all over the house and ground into the grooves of every murder weapon. So, how was Billy going to explain that later? While the cops may not have noticed all that fake blood at first, they certainly would have once the real stuff started to oxidize and turn brown. That’d leave his corn syrup concoction red as a right hand. That fake blood would have done him in, and all because he wanted to fake Sid out and show off how good he’d be at horror movie pub trivia night.

Honorable mention: Even if they hadn’t ruined their whole plan with fake blood, there was that pesky reporter, Gale Weathers, roaming around filming everything. Oops.

The Improbability of the Opening Scene in Scream 2

The problems start right from the beginning in Scream 2. As the bodycount starts stacking up, the characters realize that the people who are getting killed have the same names as those killed in the first movie. It all starts with Maureen Evans and Phil Stevens, played by Jada Pinkett Smith and Omar Epps. They represent the first two murders in the Scream universe of Maureen Prescott and Casey’s boyfriend Steve. But what are the odds that the killers could have found an actually couple at the university with those names? Very very low. But let’s say they got lucky. That’s not the only problem with the opening.

Phil decides to take a bathroom break and, when in the bathroom, starts hearing weird muttering in the next stall over. When he puts his ear to the stall wall, the killer’s knife comes through right into his ear. Ouch. The problem here is how much luck had to align to make this happen. The killer, Mickey, was already waiting in the bathroom stall for Phil. How’d he know he’d have to go to the bathroom? And how could he be sure the rest of the bathroom would be empty at the time? Or that Phil would put his ear to the exact right spot? Nope, the plan would have fallen apart with the first kill.

Honorable mention: Sure, Billy’s mom lost 60 pounds and got some work done, but makeovers aren’t magic. Someone would have had to recognize Debbie Salt as Billy’s mom. If not Gale Weathers, someone who obsessively studied the Prescott murder and would have known Debbie’s face, then why not Dewie? Sidney recognized her right away in the end, so clearly all that work didn’t totally obscure her.

The Problem With Only One Killer in Scream 3

One of the reasons why so much can be forgiven in the other Scream movies is because of each one had two killers. Each killer could be given an alibi while the other takes over a murder or two. Plus, you can control large groups of people, like the eventual parties that always end a Scream movie, by having two people in charge. Most plot holes in a Scream movie can be filled just by saying, “well, there are two killers.” This is exactly why Scream 3 would have failed from the beginning: It was only Roman Bridger.

Especially when he was the director of Stab 3 at the time, when would Roman have found the time to go around murdering people? Or how about the scenes with lots of people around, all who are always close to bumping right into him? The scenes at Jennifer Jolie’s house and the big mansion in the end would have been damn near impossible to execute with only one killer. It’s no mistake that they’ve used two killers in every movie since.

Honorable mention: How was Roman going to explain the DNA problem? He and Sidney are supposedly half siblings. Already the authorities are going to be skeptical that Sid’s the killer. When they test some of the blood around the mansion and learn that Bridger’s related to her, I don’t think he’d be able to talk his way out of being a suspect.

The Killers’ Footage in Scream 4

During the big reveal at the end of Scream 4, Jill and Charlie show that they’ve been recording all of their kills and plan on releasing the footage after some clever editing once the dust has settled. There is absolutely no way Jill could have gotten away with it for long once that footage got out.

The internet is full of amateur sleuths who would have pored over that footage for any morsel that could prove or disprove their theories. It would probably be the dumbest thing that would eventually tell on Jill, like the reflection in a window. Plus, who would release the footage? Her plan had her would-be killers dead in the end. Although it’s debatable if she would have cared if she got caught. She’d have been famous regardless.

Honorable mention: All of this of course hinges on clues never being revealed in Robbie’s livestream. The cinema club co-president was filming everything around him for the entirety of the movie. It’s bold of the killers to assume they wouldn’t be caught doing something unsavory on the cam always strapped to his face.

The Redo that Goes as Planned in Scream (2022)

Spoiler alert for the new movie!

The killers of the new Scream are rabid Stab fans that want the movies to go back to what made them so special from the beginning. (Remind you of anyone?) They spend much of their effort trying to get the kills to align as much with the first Stab as possible. They then believe that they can just change a few things in the end to make it go their way.

Here’s the problem: If you’re going to spend that much time essentially making a remake, the odds it won’t end the same way are staggeringly low. They were dumb to think they’d be the exception and actually survive their plot. That’s especially the case when they make the epically stupid mistake of involving Sid and Gale, two people who have been through this before and know exactly how to thwart a pair of horror-obsessed killers. It’s their whole plan that ended up doing them in.

Honorable mention: When Sam and Richie meet with Dewie for the first time, the former sheriff immediately casts suspicion on Richie. It’s always the boyfriend. What if Sam had taken that to heart and dropped the guy right then? After all, they’d only been going out for 6 months–it’s not like they were married. The movie could have ended at the half-hour mark.

Big Scream fan? Check out this big list of Easter eggs and trivia for the Scream franchise.