Scream: Every Killer Ranked From Worst To Best

11. Detective Wayne Bailey (Scream VI)

Scream 2 Mickey
Paramount

The ringleader Ghostface in Scream VI is Detective Bailey (Dermot Mulroney), the father of Richie, Ethan, and Quinn, and he suffers big time from being the most aggressively signposted and obvious main killer in the series to date.

From the moment that DNA of the previous killers starts showing up at new crime scenes, it's hard not to suspect the new cop character we've never met before, especially once he mentions having a dead son and his daughter "dies" in suspiciously vague fashion.

Bailey is by far the least-finessed primary Ghostface in the franchise, for though Dermot Mulroney has some hammy fun playing the seething, vengeful bad guy once the reveal happens, Bailey isn't a terribly interesting character before or after the mask is pulled off.

The script simply didn't make enough of an effort to plausibly conceal Bailey's complicity, ensuring that anyone who clocked this early on had things mostly figured out.

And on top of that, the whole vengeance motive was done so much better in Scream 2.

Contributor
Contributor

Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.