New Scream surprises fans by bringing back an original character

Scream (2022)
(Image credit: Paramount Pictures)

Warning: Major spoilers ahead for Scream! Turn back now if you haven't seen the new movie in theaters!

Scream has burst back onto the big screen, and, like any good "requel" (that's a reboot/sequel), it's a blend of the old and new.

Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette are back as Sidney Prescott, Gale Weathers, and Dewey Riley, and they're joined by a big cast of newcomers, including Melissa Barrera as central character Sam Carpenter.

Sam, it turns out, has a deep, dark secret linking her to the original murders. Billy Loomis, one of the first Ghostfaces, is her father. As it turns out, Campbell, Cox, and Arquette aren't the only legacy actors back for round five, either. Skeet Ulrich, who played Loomis in the first movie, is back in the new Scream (H/T ComicBook.com).

Scream

(Image credit: Dimension Films)

Loomis was behind the original set of murders, along with his accomplice Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard). The duo planned on framing Sidney's father for the murders, and it was revealed they were behind the death of Sidney's mother, too, because she'd been having an affair with Billy’s father. They try to carry out their grand plan at Macher's home – also the setting of the finale of 2022's Scream – but are both killed. 

How is Loomis back in Scream, then? He didn't miraculously survive getting shot in the head by Sidney – instead, he appears in the form of a recurring hallucination suffered by his daughter Sam, looking much as he did right before he was killed thanks to some CGI wizardry. In the dramatic, bloody finale, he even helps Sam defeat one of the killers.

Scream is playing exclusively in theaters now, and if you're all caught up, check out our interview with the cast for a more on the movie, or see our Scream ending explained for a deep dive into the twists and turns of that third act.

Molly Edwards
Entertainment Writer

I'm an Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering all things film and TV for the site's Total Film and SFX sections. I previously worked on the Disney magazines team at Immediate Media, and also wrote on the CBeebies, MEGA!, and Star Wars Galaxy titles after graduating with a BA in English.