Scream VI Plot Summary
The story picks up after the events of last year’s box office surprise hit, with Samantha struggling to adjust to her new reality. While it’s advised to watch 2022’s Scream before jumping into this, Scream VI does a pretty solid job recapping what’s happened as Sam attends therapy. In the time we’ve left her, Sam is public enemy number 1 and word online is that Richie was innocent and Sam has framed him as the Ghostface killer.
After moving to New York and starting a new life for themselves, Sam is struggling to keep her relationship with Tara intact. Tara wants to do her own thing and sees Sam as an annoying, intrusive figure overshadowing her own life.
When a new string of murders occurs, with someone targeting those closest to Sam and Tara, our protagonists find themselves conflicted between saving themselves from harm and doing everything they can to unmask the next Ghostface killer.
What happens on the subway?
As the film reaches its third act, a number of suspects are still on the table for being the new Ghostface killer. Sam decides the group should stick together and head for the Ghostface shrine. In order to do so, they need to ride the subway. Unfortunately in the chaos and busyness on the platform, Sam is separated from Mindy. Mindy ends up getting the next train but creepy Ethan, who has been one of the key suspects here, happens to be onboard with her, watching from afar.
On Sam’s train, the suspected killer is sitting down and turns slowly toward Sam, eventually heading right for her. However, Sam’s love interest, Danny, stands in the way and shields her… as the guy gets off the train.
As for Mindy, she finds herself face to face with the Ghostface killer, who jumps her by surprise, stabbing her constantly while covering her mouth. Unfortunately, no one else on the carriage notices her stifled wails and she’s left for dead.
When the killer leaves, Ethan scrambles over and helps Mindy out, eventually calling the authorities to take her to hospital, and also seemingly freeing himself from suspicion, especially as Mindy moans that she’s “got it wrong again.”
Do Mindy and Gail survive?
Before we unveil who the killers are, Gail’s earlier encounter with the killer at her apartment delivers a tense sequence that eventually ends with Gail stabbed in the stomach. This seemingly fatal wound sees her pass out and eventually lose consciousness. However, it’s soon revealed in the final act that Gail and Mindy both survived their ordeals and will live to fight another day.
What happens at the shrine?
Little hints were thrown in along the way over who the killer(s) were going to be but the way it goes down will catch many off-guard. At the abandoned theatre, which has been turned into the killer’s lair, the group uncover a lot of clues. Thanks to Gale’s investigative efforts off-screen, the Core 4 realize this has been a sanctuary used by the new Ghostface, where the weapons and costumes of every previous killer are exposed as collector items.
There’s a lot of police evidence in here too, meaning the killer is either connected to the police or very wealthy, given they would have needed to bribe the officers into handing this gear over.
Earlier in the movie we learned that the building belongs to Jason and Greg, two Ghostface copycats who died at the hands of the new killer during that excellent opening segment. However, that’s not the whole story, but we’ll circle back to that shortly!
In the wake of this, Sam and Tara are shocked to receive a call from Detective Bailey. He reveals that Kirby had been dismissed from the FBI after a mental breakdown caused by the latest Woodsboro murders. At this point, it would seem that she’s the killer. The girls believe Bailey and as Kirby staggers on stage bloodstained and asking the girls for help, they refuse to listen and run away.
As they do, they’re joined by Chad and… the Ghostface killers. That’s right, there’s seemingly two killers and as they stab Chad numerous times, forcing Tara to watch helplessly, the final showdown ensues.
Who are the Ghostface killers?
Tara and Samantha are trapped on both sides as Detective Bailey shows up and reveals his true intentions. It turns out he’s the real orchestrator behind all of this and he’s been working to gain revenge for Richie’s death in the previous movie. Bailey is actually Richie’s father and losing his son caused him to bring the whole family onboard in getting revenge against Sam.
When Kirby gets involved, Bailey shoots her down and goes on to tell Sam that the whole family want revenge on the people who murdered Richie. They actually started the online rumours against Sam that have plagued her for the entire move.
The shrine they’re in was originally Richie’s doing, as he managed to get his hands on the evidence courtesy of his father. Bailey changed the ownership to Greg and Jason’s names to avoid detection while investigating the Ghostface copycats. With a gun pointed to her head, Bailey demands that Sam wear the Ghostface mask belonging to Billy to show the world that she’s a murderer.
How do Sam and Tara survive?
Sam and Tara seize their moment and rush away from Bailey, looking desperately for a way out the shrine while thwarting the threat of Ethan and Quinn. After dropping down off a balcony, Tara stabs Ethan in the eye while Sam shoots Quinn in the head, leaving only Bailey alive.
At this point, Sam puts on Billy’s costume and uses a voice modulator to emulate Ghostface’s voice teasing Bailey and getting the jump on him. Sam proceeds to stab him multiple times, just like she did with Richie, before Tara jumps in and encourages her to stop.
Sam deliberates over hitting the final blow, pointing out that she doesn’t want to be a murderer and that she’s better than that. However, Tara gives her the greenlight and Sam kills him all the same.
Breathing a sigh of relief, the two take a moment but then Ethan suddenly rises from the dead and tries to kill them. However, Kirby jumps in (who’s still alive, miraculously) and drops a TV on his head.
How does Scream VI end?
With the killers unveiled and everything wrapped up, Sam is reunited with Danny who’s grateful to see her. Danny also has a number of police officers with him and he guides them into the shrine where they begin to piece together what happened. As for Sam, she takes off with the Ghostface mask and outside, mulls over her legacy and what her family have done. She drops the mask on the floor as the movie ends, seemingly at peace with her past but still carrying a heavy burden in her heart.
It seems like Chad is also going to survive as he proclaims that he’s “part of the Core 4” while wheeled outside by paramedics, which feels like a nod toward plot armour for main characters!
At the same time, Kirby, Mindy and Gale all survive too. All the legacy characters make it to the end, while the biggest surprise in Scream VI is just how many people survive!
Will there be a Scream VII?
We discuss this possibility in our latest sequel article, breaking down the likelihood that Scream will return in the future. You can check that out HERE!
Read More: Scream VI Movie Review