‘Scream 2’ Might be the Most Romantic Slasher Movie Ever
Critics’ reviews suggest Josh Ruben’s Heart Eyes (scripted by Phillip Murphy, Christopher Landon, and Michael Kennedy) is the horror/romance slasher hybrid audiences didn’t know they needed. Now, in fairness, the horror genre is pretty regularly romantic (Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead’s Spring has my heart), though slasher films often emphasize the mounting stakes and disposable supporting players more than blossoming love. With so much blood spilled, who has time for romance? In the month of love, however, I’m drawn toward what might well be the most romantic slasher movie ever made. Ever heard of a little ditty called Scream 2?
I know, I know. Scream 2 is about horror sequels and college carnage, right? Yeah, it is, but Kevin Williamson’s script both slyly and not-so-slyly follows the conventional romantic comedy beats. It’s a movie bursting with romance old and new, rekindled flames and tragic new loves. Scream might have been “sexually anorexic,” but Scream 2 is all about passion.
Most consequentially, of course, is Sidney Prescott’s (Neve Campbell) burgeoning relationship with cutie frat boy, Derek (Jerry O’Connell). In Scream, she was unfortunately paired with a likely-closeted serial killer, which no doubt subconsciously kept their relationship in firmly PG-13 territory (the occasional flashing notwithstanding). When your first serious boyfriend murders your mother and all your friends, it’d be reasonable to swear off love forever. Sidney Prescott is a fighter, though—a theme Scream 2 pretty regularly reminds you of—and far from Woodsboro, she’s ready to start anew.
Derek is handsome, loyal, and fiercely protective. Famously, he serenades Sidney in the dining hall with an off-key (but adorable) rendition of The Partridge Family’s I Think I Love You. This being a murder mystery and all, Sidney does briefly regress to 1996, suspecting for a beat in the final act that Derek might be one of the two Ghostface killers targeting her. He isn’t, and for all the meta winks and nods, his death remains one of the franchise’s most heartrending. He really was just a good guy looking out for Sidney.
That love endures not just in Scream 3 (where Sidney can be seen wearing his Greek letters), but Scream 4 as well. In that long-awaited sequel, Alison Brie’s Rebecca Walters not-incorrectly posits Sidney hasn’t boinked in quite a while. Probably not, Rebecca. The one-two punch of serial killer and then murdered boyfriend has gotta be pretty hard to handle. While my tone is jokey, Sidney’s romantic arc is pretty profound, largely because over the decades, audiences can see Sidney both retreating inward and (finally) outward from the past. In 2022’s Scream, Sidney is confirmed to be married with kids. Derek doesn’t get a single mention, but their romance was so strikingly cute two decades before, I imagine I wasn’t the only fan relieved to finally see Sidney Prescott happy and in love.
That’s to say nothing of the franchise’s most meta romance, the on-again, off-again dynamism of Dewey Riley (David Arquette) and Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox). Certainly, the pair’s real-life marriage (and subsequent divorce) had augmented the emotional core of their on-screen relationship. In Scream 4, they’re happily married, and by 2022’s legacy reboot, the two are revealed to be separated, mirroring their real relationship and adding considerable depth to that film’s most tragic death.
While Dewey and Gale are plenty cute in Scream—“I was 24 for a whole year”—Scream 2 basically dedicates a considerable portion of its runtime to their Romance She Wrote shenanigans. Dewey, introduced limping through the Windsor College Campus, gets a rapid-fire meet-cute with Gale where the two exposit about how their relationship ended and tackle old grievances. But the scene isn’t scathing, nor is it even coded with resentment. For all the frustration, it’s clear they’re very much in love.
Moments later, Dewey is insistent Gale couldn’t possibly be the killer (despite her new highlights). They clash over leaked photos and bonehead retorts, though as Scream 2 veers toward its theatrical conclusion, they finally (finally) reconnect. The intimacy is cut short by—you guessed it—that darned Ghostface, but the relief is palpable. They’re meant for each other, dammit, and they deserve to be together. At least Scream 3, for all its faults, finally put them together for good… mostly.
There are side dalliances, too. Hallie (Elise Neal, once scripted as the killer) flirts endearingly with movie nerd, Mickey (one of the killers, unfortunately), and we all agree Lois and Murphy (Rebecca Gayheart and Portia de Rossi) are gay, right? That’s to say nothing of Randy’s (Jamie Kennedy) unrequited love for Sidney. Would they have worked? Maybe. Maybe not. But the poor, lovesick sap died trying to prove it just might. Scream 2 is a campus full of love, connection, and little side stories. Sure, it’s a slasher film at its core, but who says a masked killer can’t make you swoon a time or two while they’re carving up coeds?
No differently than the pristine pairing of horror and comedy, horror and romance go together with the earnestness of love, both old and new. And if horror has always been about identification—about seeing yourself in the outcasts on-screen—then Scream 2 is a blood-soaked love letter to the movie fans, the horror fans, and the weirdos just trying to find their person. And, really, the cast of Scream 2 is just a bunch of certified weirdos finding each other in an increasingly messed-up world.
For all Gale’s ruthlessness and professional success (other than that Total Entertainment period), she’s an oddball at heart. Dewey was her perfect match. And Sidney, poor Sidney. One killing spree is bad enough. Being targeted five—soon to be six—times, though? Maybe a bit too far. But Derek didn’t care. He climbed atop a table and sang his lungs out for the woman he loved more than anything. Isn’t that what we all really want? I don’t know about you, but that kind of love, that kind of connection, really is worth screaming about
Scream 2 is now streaming on Max.
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