While nearly impossible to pick up on first viewing, Scream 2 features a hidden clue that Timothy Olyphant's Mickey is one of the sequel's killers. Wes Craven's Scream practically revitalized the horror genre all by itself, which had been stagnating during much of the 1990s. The movie's mix of likable characters, witty dialogue, an involving whodunnit, and its meta-humor would have a big impact in the years that followed. The studio realized it had a good thing on its hands and Scream 2 quickly followed, arriving a mere year after the original in 1997.

Scream 2's tight production schedule was only made harder by the fact it was one of the first major movies whose script leaked online. Big plot reveals were spoiled due to this, so the story had to be reworked on the fly. Director Craven also had to trick censors on Scream 2 and submitted an excessively violent cut to fool the MPAA into focusing on gore he didn't want to include anyway while diverting their attention from moments he did want. Despite the various setbacks, Scream 2 is a perfectly worthy follow-up to the original. Craven's assured direction and Kevin Williamson's screenplay made it (arguably) the best sequel in the franchise. The upcoming Scream 2022 will be challenging the movie for the sequel crown, however.

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Scream 2 cast suspicion on much of the cast throughout the story, but few would have suspected Timothy Olyphant's Mickey would be one of the killers. That's because this was an early role for a then relatively unknown Olyphant, and the fact Mickey doesn't have a huge role before this reveal. The underrated Scream 2 rewards a rewatch, however, and there's a hidden clue to his guilt early on. In Mickey's introduction, he's debating movie violence with a college class that includes resident geek Randy. He feels the Stab movies inspired copycat killings - which in his case, is obviously true - but he gets defensive on the subject of sequels. To Randy's assertion sequels "suck," Mickey states "It's bulls*** generalization, many sequels have surpassed the original!"

scream 2 finale mickey killer

It's an oddly defensive line, but in hindsight, it's clear Scream 2's Mickey is referring to the real-life sequel he and Mrs. Loomis (Laurie Metcalf) are working on. Mickey was inspired by the killings in the original Scream, and sought to "surpass" it with his new killing spree - and indeed, the sequel has a higher body count. Many of Mickey's film class comments subtly teased Scream 2's twist ending and can be read in a very different light once the truth is revealed, but many of his actions hint at the reveal too.

Timothy Olyphant's Mickey is often throwing suspicion on other characters when talking to Sidney or is usually seen holding a video camera - a nod to his obsession with film. In the opening movie theater scene when Omar Epps' character is stabbed in the toilet stall, listening really closely to the muttered dialogue he's trying to hear reveals Timothy Olyphant's voice. The little details sewn throughout again highlights the smart construction that Scream 2 - and most of the franchise - layers into its screenplays.

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