[Editor's note: The following article contains spoilers for Scream VI.]Scream VI shattered fans' expectations by giving us three Ghostface killers for the first time in the franchise. The three killers were also all members of the same family, determined to avenge the death of the late Richie Kirsch (Jack Quaid), 2022’s SCREAM villain. So, we know the entire Bailey family sticks together regarding killing. But what about their pre-murderer lives? In an exclusive interview with Perri Nemiroff for Collider’s Ladies Night, star Liana Liberato revealed how Scream VI’s cast discussed the workings of the Bailey family, which helped her to become a more humanized killer.
In Scream VI, Liberato play’s Quinn Bailey, the daughter of Detective Bailey (Dermot Mulroney). While posing as a law enforcer, Bailey becomes the mastermind behind the latest Ghostface killing spree, which helps to keep the tension until the last confrontation in Scream VI. While the movie doesn’t focus on the Baileys’ lives before the bloody events of the sequel, Liberato tells us Dermot led the cast into creating imaginary scenarios to justify their actions. As the star puts it:
“We all kind of talked about it a little bit, and then also with the help of Dermot's wild imagination, it was really fun that we kind of did get to build that world a little bit. I was trying to think just about Quinn's personal motive, and I kind of assumed I was probably the middle child, Richie being the oldest, me being in the middle and then Ethan being the youngest, and I would like to think that Quinn really looked up to Richie, and was a bit of a protector.”
Did Scream VI Humanize the Ghostface Killers?
Scream VI’s cast on set discussion informed their performances, but it also helped Liberato to give more humanity to Quinn. So, while the movie doesn’t explore the Baileys’ past, Liberato has a clear idea of why her character starts slashing away. In Liberato’s words:
“It was a really big goal of mine to not come across too crazy in the reveal. I really wanted Quinn's anger to be driven by an immense amount of pain and love for her brother, and this feeling of, my sole goal is to now protect my family the way that Richie took care of me. I was trying to find a sense of humaneness because there isn't a lot when it comes to Ghostface killers. I think that we played a lot with those notes and then obviously there being a hierarchy in the family with Dermot, and he obviously has this immense amount of pride with Richie.”
According to Liberato, Mulroney was so invested in crafting the Baileys' motivations that one of his improvised lines even made the final cut. The line, which is extremely informative about the family’s hierarchy, also results in one of the funniest moments of the sequel. Talking about Mulroney’s improvisation, Liberato said:
“One of my favorite lines that Dermot improvised is, ‘There's nothing like a father's love for his first son,’ which makes me laugh every time because it cuts to Ethan [Jack Champion] and Ethan’s like, damn. [Laughs] But it's such a good line! But that alone kind of lays a foundation of the type of family or the type of dynamic we were in as a family, so that was fun to play with too.”
Scream VI is currently slashing box office expectations in theaters. Check out our full interview with Liberato below: