With over 25 years since its original outing, Ghostface has had its fair share of modifications. That's to be expected with so many incarnations of the slasher icon over the years. Not only were there a mass of sequels to the original Scream movie, the masks were also modified for each incarnation. Haddonfield’s autumn mascot Michael Myers and Camp Crystal Lake’s key resident Jason Voorhees went through various revamps of their own. The theatrical releases of Halloween Kills and Candyman, along with Chucky on SYFY, made 2021 a big year for the revival of slasher icons. Leatherface will soon get his Texan welcome back party on Netflix as well, but to start off 2022, Ghostface came in hot and fast.
In a 2015 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, director Wes Craven spoke on the signature face in Scream. “In general, we didn’t mess with the mask at all,” he stated. “With Freddy [Krueger] and the New Nightmare, I felt that I probably should have stuck with the original face. [With Scream,] we just let Ghostface be Ghostface.” With that said, there was a time when the masked killer could have looked different. Due to copyright issues, there was a bit of trial and error on the first film that can be seen in several scenes. Fun World, without even knowing it, had a slasher icon in its stock of Halloween merch. Then Scary Movie took it up a notch.
From, “What’s your favorite scary movie?” to “Wazzup?,” it’s been a trip in perfecting and purposely un-perfecting Ghostface. How well does the new Scream Ghostface hold up to the original?
5. Scary Movie (2000)
How can you make fun of a movie that was already making fun of itself? You hire the Wayans brothers and dial up the level of ridiculousness. It also works as a parody in a range of genres, not just horror. Scream meets The Matrix meets Shakespeare in Love and so on. Iconic set pieces designed to scare are now remade, either as darkly funny, stupidly funny, or both.
A group of horny and pretty dumb teens accidentally runs over a fisherman. They get rid of the body, despite the man not being dead, by throwing him in the trunk. Soon a killer is on the loose. Could it be the fisherman out for revenge? Or someone else with a complicated motive? Whoever it is, he's taking out each of the teens, one by one.
A much more wrinkled and stretched out Ghostface mask is worn in this parody where anything goes. When the killer calls up Shorty (Marlon Wayans), the mask contorts, even revealing a tongue. And when the killer gets stoned, the scene literally shows how high the killer is with its eyeholes. In spoofing I Know What You Did Last Summer, the killer’s weapon of choice changes, too. The hunting knife that made Ghostface so threatening in Scream is swapped out for a big ol’ hook. This killer was never about being scary, it was all about having a good time.
4. Scream: Seasons 1 & 2
It might have been a controversial move but when the franchise moved to MTV, Ghostface was going to look different. Instead of Woodsboro, it’s Lakewood that became targeted by a masked killer. Emma (Willa Fitzgerald) and her friends deal with horror movie rules and real world issues like cyber-bullying that start up the killings.
The iconic ghoulish expression of Ghostface was swapped out for something more human. Seen in the first two seasons of the MTV show, the mask was a surgical mask worn by bullied town resident, Brandon James, to help with his facial surgery. James went on a killing spree and for two seasons another killer has taken it to continue the legacy. The bigger question might not be the motive to the killings, but in giving an already ostracized individual a mask like this and expecting it to not damage the person’s psyche further.
Not only is the mask different, the Lakewood Slasher wears a raincoat instead of a cloak like in the films. And that makes sense. Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) and the survivors of Woodsboro don’t exist in this timeline. Season 3, a complete departure of the storyline established in the past two seasons, included the traditional look of the killer but even that season’s storyline never saw a continuation. Sometimes being different for the sake of change doesn’t work. But in this MTV version, Ghostface was never a Halloween costume; it was something put together from the show’s own mythology. That deserves some credit.
3. Stab 8
Starting off in Scream 2, the franchise introduced audiences to an even deeper level of meta with the movie-in-a-movie franchise, Stab. There was no subtlety to the title and that was the point. It’s based on the “real-life” Woodsboro killing spree, so it might be fair to say the Stab movies are in poor taste.
Then came Stab 8. From clips shown of the universally panned entry in the Stab movies, the movie within Scream (2022), the killer has some major switch-ups. For starters, the Ghostface mask is metallic, ideal for reflecting the glow of a flamethrower being used on a victim instead of a plain old knife. If that’s not enough, whoever is behind the mask is showing off big, buff arms.
It’s ridiculous and over-the-top but what can’t be denied is that it's a pretty cool visual. Because Ghostface is a Halloween costume in the Scream universe (that for some reason no one has thought to discontinue), having a different version of the iconic mask would be interesting and make a certain amount of sense. This was the safer way to test that theory. But in remembering Wes Craven’s words from THR, maybe it’s best to not change what already works so well.
2. Scream (1996)
There is a reason the first Scream is still so highly regarded. It remains the most original out of the entire franchise. With all the praise, you might think it's overrated, but it holds up well after all this time. Along with a script by Kevin Williamson that gives influence to the genre and enjoys playing with its tropes, the cast is an additional selling point. When once it was career hell to star in a horror film, Scream made it cool. The premise alone is playfully aware that it sounds familiar. A killer has watched one too many scary movies and even if you have all the horror movie knowledge in the world, it might not save you. There’s a reason the face of the killer joined the slasher arena.
To celebrate the 25th anniversary, writer Alan Siegel put together an oral history of the first film for The Ringer. A later section touched upon how two masks were used during production. KNB EFX created a stunt mask that got in few appearances, due to uncertain copyrights with its trademark at Fun World. It’s seen in Casey Becker’s (Drew Barrymore) murder and the surprise kill of Principal Himbry (Henry Winkler). If you look closely, the mask’s eyeholes are more curved and puffy than they are in other scenes.
Then there was the classic mask, which looks a bit loose. In other words, it appears as if someone is wearing it and taking it off. The eyes are not always dark; at times it’s obvious someone is looking out from behind the rubber material. The cloak worn is very glittery, something toned down in later sequels, but it catches the garage light well during the death of Tatum (Rose McGowan). The dark boots worn are another intimidating element. And although in-film it’s supposed to be packaged as a “Father Death” costume, the name “Ghostface” stuck.
1. Scream (2022)
When Scream 4 didn’t perform well at the box office, it seemed Ghostface wasn’t going to be back on the big screen anytime soon. For 10 years, that was true. With this fifth film, legacy sequels and prequels was the name of the game. Sidney, Gale (Courteney Cox), and Dewey (David Arquette) were back, but this time, Ghostface had a new focus. A new teen friend group is targeted, each with relations to the past.
The classic mask is used, very much polished up. It doesn’t look worn out like in the first film. The white of the face is practically pristine and the grooves are well-defined. Any shimmer to the cloak is more subtle. It was a fun touch but with it downplayed, Ghostface more easily blends in with the shadows. This time around, the voice changer that always channeled Roger L. Jackson’s raspy vocals is snug inside the mask, with just a finger click to activate it.
Even though the jagged arm hang-offs aren’t clearly seen, it plays an additional part in the menacing quality of the killer. At times, the cloak completely hides the arms (check out the hospital attack), giving more focus to the white mask and truly making the killer appear like a phantom. Maybe it's due to a decade absence on the big screen, but Ghostface looks better than ever, making for a scary good time in the slasher’s return.