| “ | I'm not happy that I'm 35 playing a 21-year-old. I'm not happy that I have to die naked. And I'm not happy that my character is too stupid to have a gun in the house after her boyfriend's been cut up into fish sticks. | ” |
–Sarah complains about her role to Roman Bridger. | ||
Sarah Darling was a character in Scream 3 (2000). In the film, she was a 35-year-old actress who was portraying 21-year-old Candy Brooks in the later-cancelled trilogy concluder, Stab 3: Return to Woodsboro, set for release in 2000.
Candy was to be killed after two scenes of the film in the latest script to be published by writer and director of the motion picture, Roman Bridger. In true meta form, Sarah in the film, like Candy, was also killed after two scenes, and was the "chick that gets killed second" (after Christine Hamilton).
Sarah, along with a roommate, got a call, supposedly from the director wanting to her to meet him at the studio about something important. Upon arriving, she received another call which quickly turned into a menacing threat from within the Sunrise Studios. She attempted to hide from a oncoming figure about to enter the building, who ended up being a security guard. He didn't see anyone in the building and locked it up, sealing Sarah inside.
Sarah was then attacked by Ghostface within the costume room and stabbed from behind, killing her almost instantly. The killer then left a second photograph of Maureen Prescott. Following her death, her co-star Tom Prinze was drunk and upset and the film was cancelled.
She was the third victim of the third Ghostface killing spree.
She was portrayed by Jenny McCarthy.
Biography
The Hollywood Ghostface Murders (2000)
Sarah believes they are not in any danger.
Sarah express skepticism that Cotton Weary's killer was in relation to the Stab films, due to Cotton's shady conman nature on his rise to fame. Angelina and Tyson appear anxious over the deaths, and Sarah quotes Candy saying, "We are not in any danger", a line from page fifteen of the film.
Sarah is asked to come back to Sunrise Studios for an important meeting. In actuality, Roman was trapping Sarah to isolate and kill her inside. She speaks to Roman over the phone, and deduces the meeting has occurred due to a script change.
Sarah shows paranoia and fear going through the props department at the studio.
During the script change rehearsal, she has an outburst of frustration over slasher film cliches and nonsensical character actions. After she vents, Roman calmly asks, "You're not happy with your part?". When Sarah delivers these lines, some are a meta queue-in for the audience that references the actual production of Scream 3 itself, including its frequent rewrites and script changes.
Roman then states it is not a new script, it is actually a new movie. Sarah asks which movie it is, he says, "My movie", then switches to the Ghostface voice, saying "And it's called... Sarah gets skewered like a fucking pig". She freaks out, and runs out of the room. She sees a shadowy figure enter the door, and panics to hide. It is actually a security guard, who is planning to lock up after not seeing anyone (as Sarah hides).
Death
Sarah's corpse lies over the shattered glass door.
Sarah hides among many Ghostface costumes in racks held in the props department room, intensifying her anxiety. Ghostface pushes the stall rack out, causing her to fall on the floor. She then grabs a hold of a knife, which turns out to be a rubber prop. Ghostface swings at her, then she ducks to find another prop weapon to use.
As she continues to fight and swings with a prop axe twice, it is too late. She is punched in the face and swerves backwards, shattering the glass of the mirrored door window. She is then stabbed in the back deeply, instantly killing her. Her bloodied face reveals the cuts from the glass shattering into her face.
As Roman (as the killer) described "the script" the way she would be killed on the phone, her corpse did in fact look like that of a slaughtered pig.
Aftermath
Sarah's death effectively cancelled the initial third Stab film. Her co-star, Tom Prinze, grieved by getting drunk. Jennifer Jolie invited her co-stars to her house for a wrap party, despite the film's cancellation. Mark Kincaid described her as a dead celebrity following her demise.
Legacy
Color-coded symbolism: Paranoid, purple-wearing blondes in daylight. Judy Hicks (below) and Sarah (above).
Sarah's scene hiding among the Ghostface costumes in the props department room on set has become an iconic framed still for Scream fans. A fan made poster for the sixth film used the scene as inspiration, which became a viral social media post.
In Scream 5 (2022 film), Sarah's death is given a subtle nod with the character of Judy Hicks. Similarly, Judy is a blonde, female character who dies in her second full-length scene of the film, while also wearing purple, showing hyper-paranoia like Sarah.
Both attacks are also daylight kills, however in Judy's case, she does not enter an indoor area as she is killed, and is killed casually outside her front door.
In Scream VI, drawings of Sarah can be seen in a glass case while the remaining group are exploring the Ghostface Shrine.
Relationships
Allies
|
Enemies
|
Quotes
- "We are not in any danger."
- "Fuck you very much." To Tyson Fox
- "Psh, what character? I'm Candy, the chick who gets killed second. I'm only in two scenes."
- "The shower scene's been done! Hello? Vertigo!"
- "My boyfriend just died. Why am I showering?"
- "FUCK!" (Final word)
- "Has there been another goddamn rewrite?"
Trivia
- She was described as "35, playing a 21 year old bimbo. Very hot. Very blonde. Ample cleavage" in the script.
- Although not directly inferred or stated after the call, Sarah would have known that the person about to murder her was Roman Bridger. This explains why, despite her fearfulness, she was confrontational. However, it is strange she did not plead or call him by his name.
- A theory suggests Possible Accomplice Angelina Tyler is Sarah's killer, explaining why Sarah does not call Roman by name when he attacks her. If she felt the Ghostface figure was unlike his frame and stature, this would make sense.
- Angelina as Sarah's killer also explains how Roman calling her would not be heard by Sarah in the other room.
- Her death receives a subtle color-coded callback with Judy Hicks in the fifth film.
- Her name and character is a reference to Sarah Michelle Gellar in Scream 2 (1997 film). Wes Craven referred to her as "Sarah, darling" and like Sarah in the film, Gellar had difficulties with the production amid re-writes and re-shoots, due to her own multi-shootings with other work commitments (such as her show Buffy).
- A line was cut in her scene with Roman on the phone saying, "I'm a professional, I can't work like this," according to the DVD commentary.
- Alicia Silverstone was offered the part of Sarah Darling, and the parts of Angelina Tyler, as well as Cotton Weary's girlfriend Christine Hamilton as well.
- Jenny McCarthy, who portrayed Sarah, was actually only 26 when shooting the film in 1999 (27 when it was released), when she played a 35-year-old (portraying a 21-year-old in Stab 3: Return to Woodsboro).
- This could possibly be a joke at the assumption that many famous celebrities lie about their age and are older than they really are
- Like some projects will have actors in their late 20s or even early 30s play teens or young adults. Only this is reverse with Sarah being 35 and her character being 21 and McCarthy herself being in her 20s playing a much older role.
- Interestingly Enough Alicia Silverstone, Ali Larter, Tara Reid, Singer Monica and Kate Hudson (Who had been cast in the movie presumably as Sarah or Christine Hamiliton but had to drop out) were all considered for the role and are much younger than McCarthy, Monica and Hudson would have been 19 and 20 if cast.
- In the original script, Angelina killed Sarah.
- A deleted scene for the film showed that Sarah was being watched from a distance as she entered the Sunrise Studios office.
- There was a deleted scene with Sarah going through security where she was asked to get an ID before she went to the Sunrise Studios office. The deleted scene can be found on Reddit.
- Jenny McCarthy turned down played Carmen Elektra's character, Drew Decker (A parody of Casey Becker and named after Drew Barrymore) in Scary Movie to be in Scream 3 as Sarah Darling, who more or less is the same kind of character as Drew Decker. McCarthy would later cameo in Scary Movie 3, which featured Anthony Anderson.
- In Scream VI, Sarah's portraits can be discerned in the shrine.
Gallery
 |
Sarah Darling has a Photo Gallery. |
Appearances
Character Guide
| Scream 3 Characters | ||
| Principal Characters | Sidney Prescott • Gale Weathers • Dewey Riley • Ghostface | |
| Recurring Supporting Characters | Randy Meeks • Cotton Weary | |
| Supporting Characters | Angelina Tyler • Christine Hamilton • Jennifer Jolie • John Milton • Mark Kincaid • Martha Meeks • Roman Bridger • Sarah Darling • Steven Stone • Tom Prinze • Tyson Fox | |
| Recurring Minor Characters | Neil Prescott • Maureen Prescott • Hank Loomis | |
| Ghostface | Roman Bridger | |