You know how some movie villains just won’t stay dead? Billy Loomis is the poster child for that. Even though Sidney Prescott put a bullet in his head at the end of the first Scream, his shadow is all over the 1997 sequel. Honestly, it’s kinda wild. He isn't physically there—unless you count a grainy video or a movie-within-a-movie—but he is arguably the most important person in Scream 2.
Think about it. Most slashers just have a guy in a mask. Scream gave us a guy in a mask whose mommy issues literally fueled a second massacre.
The Revenge of Mrs. Loomis
The biggest way Billy Loomis in Scream 2 matters is through his mother, Nancy. Remember "Debbie Salt"? The annoying reporter who kept pestering Gale Weathers? Yeah, that was Billy’s mom in a Jackie O suit.
Her motive was basically "good old-fashioned revenge," as she puts it. She didn't care about "the movies" like her partner Mickey Altieri did. She just wanted Sidney dead because Sidney killed her "baby boy." It’s pretty ironic when you think about it. Billy’s whole psychological break happened because Nancy abandoned him after his father’s affair. Then she shows up a year later, acting like a grieving mother, to kill the girl who survived her son's murder spree.
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- The Motive: Pure vengeance. She blames Sidney for Billy's death and Maureen Prescott for her marriage ending.
- The Accomplice: She found Mickey on a "psychopath website." She paid his tuition and encouraged his "work" just so she could have a fall guy.
Sidney actually calls her out on this in the finale. She tells Nancy that Billy did what he did because she left him. It’s a brutal moment. It shows that while Billy was a monster, he was a monster created by the woman now trying to "avenge" him.
Luke Wilson and the "Stab" Cameo
We can't talk about Billy in this movie without mentioning Stab. In the Scream universe, the events of the first film were turned into a cheesy slasher movie called Stab.
In a meta-twist, we get to see the opening of this movie-within-a-movie. And who is playing Billy Loomis? Luke Wilson. It’s a hilarious bit of casting. He’s wearing the same white t-shirt and open button-down that Skeet Ulrich wore in the original. Seeing a young Luke Wilson recreate the "I'm sorry, Sidney" scene is one of those 90s moments that aged like fine wine. It also highlights how the media (and Gale Weathers) exploited Billy’s crimes for profit almost immediately.
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The Script Leaks That Changed Everything
Here is something most casual fans don't know: Billy's role in the original plans for Scream 2 was even more complicated.
During production, the script leaked online. It was one of the first major internet leaks in Hollywood history. In that early version, there were four killers instead of two. Derek (Sidney’s boyfriend) and Hallie (her roommate) were supposed to be the killers alongside Mrs. Loomis.
There's a persistent rumor that in one draft, Mrs. Loomis claimed she coached Billy to kill Maureen Prescott. This would have turned her into the "Original Mastermind" long before Scream 3 gave that title to Roman Bridger. Kevin Williamson eventually retooled the whole thing, making Mickey the lone accomplice to keep the audience guessing.
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Why He Still Matters
Even decades later, Billy Loomis remains the gold standard for Ghostface. Every sequel tries to live up to the "Billy and Stu" dynamic. In Scream 2, his influence is what makes the stakes feel personal. Without Billy, Mrs. Loomis doesn't exist. Without the trauma Billy caused, Sidney isn't the hardened survivor we see at Windsor College.
He’s the ghost that never leaves the machine.
If you're revisiting the franchise, pay close attention to how Gale Weathers talks about him. She’s the one who turned him into a celebrity through her book, The Woodsboro Murders. It’s a weird cycle of fame and violence that keeps bringing the Loomis name back to the surface.
Next Steps for Fans:
If you want to see the "physical" return of Skeet Ulrich, you'll have to jump ahead to Scream (2022) and Scream VI, where he appears as a hallucination to his daughter, Sam Carpenter. But for the purest exploration of his legacy and the wreckage he left behind, a rewatch of Scream 2 is mandatory. Look for the subtle ways Nancy mimics Billy’s mannerisms—it’s a masterclass in inherited madness.