While Scream is filled with humor and meta-commentary about the horror movie genre, it is first and foremost a slasher murder mystery whodunnit in which the characters must race to figure out the identity and motive of the Ghostface killers before it is too late. Because of this, the smart characters who follow the rules and exercise good judgment are able to stay alive, while those who Ghostface is able to outsmart quickly become victims.
Characters like Mindy and Dewey prove their intelligence through their knowledge of the rules for surviving a horror movie while other characters, like Chad and Sam, show how smart they are by successfully avoiding many of the mistakes that horror movie characters often make.
Judy Hicks
After receiving a concerning call from Ghostface in which he taunts her with some menacing and memorable lines of dialogue in true Ghostface fashion, Judy Hicks races home to try to save her son, Wes. Unfortunately for her, the call is a setup for Ghostface to ambush her and kill her.
Judy is not an unintelligent character and has the wherewithal to always carry a weapon and try to track Ghostface’s call. However, Ghostface’s threat forces her to act quickly and she ends up in a vulnerable position.
Gale Weathers
Against Dewey’s warning, Gale Weathers returns to Woodsboro to cover the new killings. While she and Sidney are able to identify Amber’s ruse at Stu’s house, she is still shot and injured for the rest of the film.
She is able to help Sidney outsmart Amber and incapacitate her, but Gale mostly plays a secondary role in the film. She is smart enough to follow Sidney’s lead and encourages Sam to do the same, but she does not use her experience and intelligence to contribute as often as Sidney does.
Tara Carpenter
As the target of the opening attack, Tara is forced to quickly figure out what is going on while simultaneously answering horror movie trivia. She learns from the experience and does everything she can to prevent being in a bad situation again.
The biggest mistake that Tara makes is trusting Amber, who is lying and manipulating her from the beginning of their friendship. She is a smart character who uses her intelligence to stay alive, but she is only in peril because she could not figure out that her best friend is trying to kill her.
Chad Meeks-Martin
As the nephew of Randy Meeks and brother of Mindy Meeks-Martin, Chad is fully aware of all the rules for surviving a horror movie. Because of this, he is able to use his knowledge to avoid bad situations, like turning down Liv’s invitation to go upstairs during the party.
However, he ultimately goes against this better judgment and goes off alone to find her. Despite everything that his sister has taught him, he still makes the mistake of breaking the rules and nearly loses his life as a result.
Mindy Meeks-Martin
Mindy Meeks-Martin has followed in her uncle’s footsteps and become the next generation’s rules expert. She is able to educate her friends on everything they need to know to stay alive. She uses this information to keep herself safe during the party until she gets inebriated and leaves herself vulnerable to attack.
Mindy always knows the right thing to do and she is even smart enough to figure out that she is about to be attacked just before Ghostface strikes. However, she does not learn from Randy’s attack in Stab and falls victim to the exact same situation.
Dewey Riley
Because of everything that he has been through, Dewey Riley is smart enough to immediately identify Richie as one of the killers the first time he meets him. Additionally, he is experienced enough to know that nothing short of a headshot would ensure that Ghostface is dead.
However, this leads him to make the unwise decision to go back and try to finish off Ghostface on his own. Dewey has nearly died many times and has always been smart and lucky enough to survive, but he overthinks the situation and goes back when he should have just escaped with the others.
Sidney Prescott
After 25 years of dealing with Ghostface killers, Sidney Prescott has become an intelligent character who knows all about the murderer’s methods and patterns. As such, she is able to pass on her wisdom to new horror movie final girl Sam, even though Sam disregards her warnings.
Sidney is smart enough to know that Ghostface is going to follow Sam and places a tracker on her car, allowing her to show up for the climax and help thwart the murders. She has relied on her wits to get her out of trouble for years and she is once again smart enough to escape and defeat Ghostface.
Sam Carpenter
Having seen the Stab movies and heard the history of the Ghostface killings, Sam Carpenter is determined to make wise choices and stay alive. She tries to make the smart decision of leaving town but is ultimately manipulated by Richie into going to Amber’s.
Sam is one of the best characters in Scream and makes a lot of intelligent decisions that help keep her and her sister safe. Her major oversight comes as she is deceived by Richie, however, she ultimately chooses to put her faith in her sister rather than him, a move that saves their lives.
Amber Freeman
As one of the two Ghostface killers, Amber Freeman is able to help conceive and execute an incredibly elaborate plan to infiltrate Tara’s friend group and orchestrate the events of the film in order to provide Hollywood with a story to inspire a new Stab movie.
Cunning and manipulative, she is an evil mastermind who is able to consistently stay several steps ahead of the other characters. She completely outsmarts Tara and is nearly able to see her violent scheme come to fruition.
Richie Kirsch
Initially appearing to be a sweet guy with no interest in the Stab movies, Richie reveals himself to actually be a horror-obsessed killer who is determined to inspire a new Stab film. He is a criminal genius who seamlessly manipulates everyone around him, even stealing Tara’s inhaler to force them to go to Amber’s.
While his plan is ultimately a little too ambitious, he plays his part perfectly and nearly pulls it off. Despite being vicious and unhinged, he is able to outsmart the other characters and is undeniably intelligent.
