Wes Craven’s seminal 1996 slasher Scream originally had a more heroic ending for resident geek Randy Meeks (Jamie Kennedy). The meta-horror movie is highly regarded for its sharp writing, spawning four sequels and a television spinoff. The films focus on the journey of Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), Dewey Riley (David Arquette), and Gale Weathers (Courtney Cox), as they are repeatedly stalked by a masked serial killer, notorious for taunting victims over the phone.
Randy was introduced in the first film as a member of Sidney’s group of high school friends. He was also an employee at the local video store and one of Woodsboro’s resident cinephiles, and only Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich) - Sidney’s boyfriend and secret murderous psychopath - rivaled his knowledge of horror films. Randy narrowly survived the original Woodsboro murders but wasn’t so lucky in Scream 2, in which a new Ghostface killer preyed on Sidney and her friends at Windsor College.
Randy’s death is particularly poignant, given he was one of the few genuinely decent people in Sidney’s life. He was the film nerd who pined for Sidney but never made his move, jealous of her relationship with Billy, and then Derek (Jerry O’Connell). However, the original script for Scream provided Randy with an alternate ending where he got the last laugh over the killers, while also teasing a romantic future with his crush. Randy’s primary role in the series was to explain the rules of how to survive a horror movie. He aided the heroes’ investigation in the second film, and even appeared via videotape in Scream 3, having had the foresight to record his knowledge of trilogies should he die. Yet, Randy was never given his due. This wasn’t always the case, as an earlier draft of Scream featured a fight between Randy and Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard), Billy’s accomplice.
In the finished film, Randy was shot in the shoulder and remained unconscious while Sidney alone caused Stu’s (alleged) demise, by throwing a television on his head. In an earlier draft, it’s Randy who engages in a short brawl before reaching for the VCR atop the television, crashing it down on his opponent. Sidney then shoots Stu in the head, delivering a more definitive final blow, whereas Lillard believes Stu survived the film. Randy’s fight would have signified a major victory over the killers, who threatened and belittled him earlier in the movie. The original script also gave him one final triumph - he finally asks Sidney out on a date.
His feelings for her were present throughout the film, teasing a possible motive as the police search for the killer, and were subsequently joked about in Scream 2. He was ridiculed when asking Stu if he thought she would go out with him, but the script provides an answer. Immediately following Billy and Stu’s deaths, Randy acknowledges his timing is poor as he helps Sidney untie her kidnapped father, but asks her to see a movie together. After a moment of disbelief, she responds, “Only if it’s a nice Meg Ryan movie.” It’s understandable why this was cut – it's definitely terrible timing, considering Sidney's boyfriend just tried to kill her. However, it’s a cute scene and fun reference to a previous discussion with Billy, whom she confides in that she wishes her life was more like a Meg Ryan rom-com.
Obviously, Scream didn’t go this route, and there’s no hint of a romance between Sidney and Randy in the sequel. While the alternate scene improves Randy's character arc, it’s ultimately way more satisfying to watch Sidney take on both her attackers alone. Had the scene been included, Scream 2 may not have featured Randy’s witty response when asked how he’d make a good sequel – “I’d let the geek get the girl.”
