10 Best Non-Final Girls In Horror Movies

The quintessential non-final girl features in 1996's Scream: Tatum Riley.

Played by Rose McGowan, Tatum is a significant character within Scream canon despite only appearing in the very first installment. A popular high schooler, she is the younger sister of Scream mainstay Sheriff Dewey Riley and best friend to series protagonist, Neve Campbell's Sidney Prescott.

Tatum makes quite an impression with her sharp tongue and quick wit no matter what scene she is in. She also holds the distinction of being the first character to name "Ghostface", mocking the killer when she believes it is Randy in disguise.

McGowan's character has the signature non-girl badass streak within her as well. Even when the killer slices her arm blocking her escape, Tatum fights back like a cornered wildcat; after clotheslining Ghostface with the fridge door, she then proceeds to pelt him with beer bottles. Stunning the killer after one bottle catches him square in the face, Tatum vaults over him in almost Mission: Impossible-esque fashion.

Tatum's only undoing is her choice of escape routes. Attempting to escape through a cat flap in the garage door, she gets stuck. From there, Ghostface proceeds to operate the garage door, which lifts a struggling Tatum and crushes her spine in the mechanism. It is never revealed whether it was Billy or her own boyfriend Stu wearing the mask when she died, but the iconic manner of her death, coupled with the popularity of her character, gives Tatum Riley arguably the strongest non-final girl legacy out there.