10 Iconic Movie Scenes Made Possible By Enforced Method Acting

3. Wes Craven Told Drew Barrymore Animal Cruelty Stories Whilst Shooting The Opening Scene - Scream (1996)

Scream's opening sequence is about as iconic as they come: Drew Barrymore, home alone, is continually called on her phone by Ghostface, a serial killer who eventually gets into her house (wearing that terrifying mask), and proceeds to murder her. Barrymore is great in the scene - she really looks distressed, don't you think? I wonder why.

It's probably because Barrymore, a keen animal lover and activist, was continually provoked by the movie's director, Wes Craven, prior to filming. Determined to get her worked up and in the appropriate mindset for the scene to follow, he set about re-accounting horrific stories of animal cruelty before and inbetween takes. This apparently upset the actress to such an extent, that she broke down into tears. And that was before Craven threatened to murder her dog. Seriously. According to a few sources, the made some suggestions that he might kill Barrymore's dog, as to push her over the edge.