Trivia: The first wave of ads for Scream worked hard to downplay that it was a slasher film. There were no clear shots of the killer in costume and emphasis was put on the killer's phone calls and characters trying to solve the mystery. Ads described it as a "thriller" and Wes Craven a "master of suspense" (rather than horror). Later ads proudly touted how "scary" and "terrifying" the movie was but still refrained from showing the killer's costume or using the word "horror."
Trivia: After the guests leave and Randy is alone on the couch watching Halloween, right as the ghost-face walks in, the Halloween theme begins. In Halloween the beginning of the theme means the shape is near.
Trivia: The murder of Principal Himbry was added after producer Bob Weinstein noticed there were about thirty pages in the script (which roughly translates to thirty minutes of screen time) in which nobody died. The scene also resolved the climax at Stu's party, as it gave all the guests a reason to leave.
Trivia: The original title of the film was 'Scary Movie', the same title as its spoof.
Trivia: A scene near the end required Skeet Ulrich to throw a phone receiver in frustration, and he wound up accidentally hitting Matthew Lillard in the back of the head with it, prompting Lillard to yell at him, "You hit me with the phone, dick!" Wes Craven found this so hilarious that he decided to use that take in the film.
Trivia: When Sidney and Tatum are talking on the porch, Sidney says, "...If I'm wrong, that means the killer may still be out there..." Tatum replies, "Don't go there, Sid. You're starting to sound like some Wes Carpenter flick." This is an inside joke about "Scream" director Wes Craven. He often jokes about how people always confuse him with "Halloween" director John Carpenter. (00:54:10)
Trivia: When Henry Winkler is looking for the "kids" that keep knocking on his door, he opens one door and surprises a cleaner. The cleaner is dressed like Freddy Krueger, is called Fred, and is played by Wes Craven himself. (00:49:55)
Trivia: When Henry Winkler goes back in to his office and opens the cupboard to check if anyone's inside, you can see his black leather Fonzie jacket hanging up. (00:50:25)
Trivia: Drew Barrymore actually called 911 multiple times in the opening scene since the propmaster forgot to unplug the phone. So she would call, scream, and then hang up. The police eventually reached the set, calling the phone back during one of the takes. The crew had to quickly explain to the police (who were concerned about the woman who kept calling, screaming, then hanging up) that they were just shooting a movie and that nobody was really in trouble.
Trivia: When Scream was reviewed by the MPAA, the executives utterly refused to release the film with the violent opening scene, considering it "too intense." As a result, Wes Craven had to lie to them, claiming that was the only take he was able to get and cutting the scene would downgrade the rest of the movie. After a few more cuts, the MPAA agreed to release the film under an R rating.
Trivia: If you look at Stu in the scene where everyone is watching Halloween and some guys are talking about Jamie Lee's breasts, Stu starts looking down the shirt of the girl in front of him. (01:09:55)
Trivia: In the beginning when Casey's parents come and hear her choking on the phone, Casey's dad says "Listen, I want you to drive to the MacKenzie's house and call the police." At the end of the movie Halloween, Laurie Strode tells the two little kids she's babysitting to walk over to the MacKenzie's house to call the police.
Trivia: Casey says about the "Nightmare on Elm Street" films that "the first one was scary but the rest sucked." This is a cute little reference to the fact that the first film was directed by Wes Craven, while most of the sequels weren't. Craven reportedly wanted to cut the line because he felt it made him seem like an egomaniac, but kept it in as he did direct the sort-of spin-off/sequel "New Nightmare," so the line was also making fun of him a little bit.
Trivia: Feeling bad about the line "With my luck they'd cast Tori Spelling", Neve Campbell sent Tori Spelling flowers and an apologetic card.
Trivia: When Sidney is going into school, and TV reporters are chasing her, look closely at an auburn haired reporter she says "People want to know, they have a right to know." That woman is actually Linda Blair, who played the daughter Reagan in the Exorcist.
Trivia: The school scenes were originally meant to be filmed in the Santa Rosa High School. However, right before filming began, the school officials pulled out of the project. The crew was forced to scramble to find another school at the last second. Director Wes Craven was furious at the school board, and decided to poke some fun at them in the credits. If you wait around long enough, you'll see the message "No thanks whatsoever to the Santa Rosa City School District Governing Board."
Trivia: The scene where Billy sneaks into Sidney's room is almost identical to the scene where Glen sneaks into Nancy's room in A Nightmare on Elm Street. (00:12:45)
Trivia: Even though Drew Barrymore is killed very early in the movie, most of the posters and movie covers show her in the front with the main characters. This is because the movie makers wanted everyone think she was the pretty heroine, then be shocked when she was killed.
Trivia: The killer's costume in the Scream movies has come to be known as "Ghostface". When the costume's package is first shown to the Police Chief by Dewey, it is actually called "Father Death". The only time "Ghostface" is actually mentioned is by Tatum right before she dies, when she calls him "Mr. Ghostface". (00:35:05 - 01:06:15)
Answer: Landline phones like the one used in the movie cannot dial out a phone number while the line is active. Considering the killer is continuously calling her, she can't dial out on the phone line. This is referenced in the movie itself when her parents arrive home, attempt to dial 911, and can't due to the line still being active.