The following article contains major spoilers for Scream VI, in theaters now.

Scream VI star Dermot Mulroney has revealed that while he knew he would be playing a villain in the slasher sequel, he had no idea he had actually been cast as the iconic Ghostface killer until he read the end of the film's script.

Mulroney opened up about how he found out he would be playing Ghostface in Scream VI during a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly. "I was told by my agent, 'Good news, we have a call from Scream VI, they want you, they can't tell you anything else, but they need to let you know that you are the bad guy,'" the actor said. "It wasn't called 'Ghostface' there; it was just 'the bad guy.' I wasn't even up on how intense people are following Ghostface. So then I get pieces of the script, but they neglected to tell me what part I'm playing. So I'm looking for two things when I'm reading the script, which part it is that I am and who it is in the script that's going to wind up being Ghostface. So, for a while, I suspected that I was going to play the psychologist because Bailey is written so mildly I thought that's probably not my part; it's just a passing detective. It shows you that the script itself was quite ingenious in how they buried Bailey or made him incidental to scenes. Then I get to the end, and it is Bailey! It was me all along!"

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Scream VI's Ghostface Is a Triple Threat

Scream VI breaks from previous entries in the series by featuring not one, not two, but three Ghostface killers. Detective Wayne Bailey (Mulroney) is revealed to not only be the mastermind of the operation, but also the father of Richie Kirsch (Jack Quaid), one of the killers from 2022's Scream. Wayne's fellow killers in Scream VI are his other two children, Quinn Bailey (Liana Liberato) and Ethan Landry (Jack Champion), with the three seeking revenge for Richie's death at the hands of new series protagonist Sam Carpenter (Melissa Barrera) in the previous film.

"It's really kind of a complex plan," Mulroney told EW regarding Wayne's murderous scheme. "[My character has] collected all of those artifacts, and called all those people in, and rented out that theater. Ridiculously complex but successful until our heroes take him out, right?" The Zodiac alum also gleefully recalled shooting the climactic scene in which Wayne, Quinn and Ethan reveal themselves as the killers. "It was glorious," Mulroney laughed. "It was glorious, and all of us were in a great mood because it's that moment in the movies. Of course, what's wonderful about that reveal scene in Scream VI is that it's amidst this incredible action sequence, whereas in some of the earlier movies, it's kind of a standalone scene in the house. This has nine other things going on at the same time. It was all of us together in that final conflict, and they were really exciting days to shoot."

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While Scream VI's inclusion of three killers is a first for the franchise, the ultimate reveal does hearken back to previous entries. For instance, Wayne's motive is similar to that of Nancy Loomis (Laurie Metcalf), who carried out the Ghostface killings at Windsor College alongside Mickey Altieri (Timothy Olyphant) in Scream 2. Nancy was looking to exact revenge on original series protagonist Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) for the death of her own son, Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich), who himself had carried out the original Woodsboro killings alongside Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard) in 1996's Scream. Moreover, Quinn faking her own death in Scream VI to eliminate herself as a suspect is reminiscent of when Roman Bridger -- the franchise's only lone Ghostface -- did the same in Scream 3.

Scream VI Slashes Its Way to Success

Scream VI released in theaters on March 10. During its opening weekend, the film brought in a franchise record of $44.4 million at the domestic box office. At the time of writing, the film has grossed a total of $76 million domestically and $116 million worldwide. Scream VI has also been well-received by critics and audiences alike. The film currently holds a "Certified Fresh" rating of 77 percent on Rotten Tomatoes against an audience score of 92 percent.

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Scream VI is in theaters now.

Source: Entertainment Weekly