10 Slasher Horror Movie Characters Who Were Seconds Away From Surviving
6. Tom - Scream 3
In the Scream franchise, Sidney Prescott learns she and her friends are being targeted by a masked murderer called Ghostface. Even though Sidney shot the killer dead, someone else took on the mantle of Ghostface in Scream 3, causing Sidney to be stalked and tormented once more.
To toy with his victims, Ghostface faxes pages of a screenplay which details who he intends to kill next. (This film was made when fax machines were a thing.) Curious to learn who's next on the killer's hit-list, Sidney's associate, Tom, ventures into the house where the page was faxed.
Because Ghostface cut the power, Tom is forced to read the script with his lighter. To his horror, he reads the words, "And the killer will give mercy to whoever smells the gas." Deducing that Ghostface has turned on all the gas in the house, Tom realises he needs to get out. Before he gets a chance, the fire from his lighter ignites the gas, causing the house to explode.
Because Ghostface had cut all the power, Tom should've known he was being led into a trap. If he took the page out of the house and read it outside, he would've been fine.