Roman Bridger
The Hollywood Murders, also known as the third Ghostface killing spree, was a series of murders committed by Roman Bridger in order to lure his half-sister Sidney Prescott out of hiding. All the victims were in some way connected to the production of Stab 3: Return to Woodsboro.
Background[]
Around the 1970s a young woman named Maureen Roberts from Woodsboro, California moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career as an actress. Under the alias of Rina Reynolds she had roles in several films produced by horror producer John Milton. Maureen was invited to a party at Milton’s estate, where he promised to introduce her to several influential men who could get her parts in films in exchange for sexual favours. Maureen attended the party and was gang raped by the men, resulting in her becoming pregnant. Despite trying to report the rape, no charges were brought and Rina Reynolds was blacklisted in Hollywood as a result. She then decided return to Woodsboro but not before gave birth to Roman Bridger, a son who she gave up for adoption.
After returning home Maureen met Neil Prescott, whom she’d later marry and have a daughter with named Sidney. However Maureen, traumatised from her assault eventually began a series of extramarital affairs with other men, including at least Cotton Weary and Hank Loomis, the latter of which happened to be the father of Sidney’s boyfriend Billy. In 1995, a now adult Roman had finally tracked down his birth mother and knocked on her door hoping to reunite with her. However Maureen only saw him as a reminder of her rape and rejected him, stating that he was Rina’s child and Rina was dead before slamming the door in his face.
An infuriated Roman came up with a plan to get revenge on Maureen and began secretly recording his mother’s liaisons, including meeting Hank Loomis at a motel. He showed the footage to Billy who realised that the affair was the reason his mother Nancy had left town and abandoned him. An enraged Billy was primed by Roman to kill Maureen, he also provided Billy with advice on how to get away with it including getting a partner to sell out in case they got caught and find someone to frame. Billy pressured his friend Stu Macher into helping him and together they killed Maureen and framed Cotton Weary for it.
Unbeknownst to Roman, Billy and Stu decided to continue killing and planned a murder spree that would take place around a year after Maureen’s death. Their main target was Sidney and through a series a phone calls and attacks by the pair who were wearing a Ghostface costume they tormented her and killed several people before Sidney turned the tables and killed both of them. The resulting media attention around the events made Sidney a celebrity survivor, this was only fuelled by a second killing spree at Windsor College, committed by Nancy Looms who wanted revenge on Sidney for her son’s death and her accomplice Mickey Altieri. Both killers once again ended up dead while trying to kill Sidney.
Roman’s rage around Sidney’s stardom only grew as the events of the murders were turned into books and subsequently movies. Roman decided to get revenge on Sidney for stealing the life he felt should have been his by committing another series of murders in order to lure Sidney out of hiding.
The Murders[]
Roman’s first target was Cotton Weary, calling him over the phone with an advanced voice changer he threatens to hurt Cotton’s girlfriend Christine Hamilton unless he tells him Sidney’s location, when Cotton doesn’t reply Roman attacks Christine dressed as Ghostface. He chases Christine into a locked room and fools her into believing that it’s Cotton attacking her by replicating his voice through the door, when Cotton returns Christine attacks him with a golf club believing she is defending herself. She’s so focused on Cotton she doesn’t notice when Roman comes up behind her and kills her with a stab to the back. He then attacks Cotton, stabbing him in the chest and finishing him off with a stab to the eye.
Soon after, the police are scouring the set of Stab 3: Return to Woodsboro, the third film based on the Woodsboro and Windsor College Murders. Roman, who is working as the director of the film creates a pretence of concern by pleading with the studio executives not to shutdown the film because of Cotton’s murder since he had just filmed a cameo as himself in the movie. Roman soon makes plans for his next murder and lures one of the films actors Sarah Darling to the studio with the belief that they would run lines. He fights with Sarah before punching her through a door and stabbing her in the back.
Victims[]
Primary target[]
- Sidney Prescott (Survived)
Victims[]
- Christine Hamilton †
- Cotton Weary †
- Sarah Darling †
- Steven Stone †
- Tom Prinze †
- Angelina Tyler †
- Tyson Fox †
- Jennifer Jolie †
- John Milton †
Survivors[]
- Gale Weathers (Survived)
- Dewey Riley † (Survived)
- Mark Kincaid (Survived; stabbed)
Perpetrators[]
- Roman Bridger † (Killed by Dewey)