Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Heart Eyes!
ThoughHeart Eyesclearly took inspiration from theScreamfranchise, Ghostface and the Heart Eyes Killer have just as many differences as they do similarities. The 2025 horror-comedyHeart Eyeshas quickly solidified itself as a great new addition to the slasher genre, focusing on a masked villain called theHeart Eyes Killerwho attacks couples every Valentine’s Day. While watching the film, commenters and critics, including myself, noticed the similarities betweenHeart Eyesand theScreamfranchise.
It’s obvious that the producers of Heart Eyes previously worked on the Scream franchise, as they borrowed some of the best elements from the other meta-horror-comedy. This includes characteristics of Ghostface, one of thebest slasher villains of all time. However, the Heart Eyes Killer also sets itself apart from its predecessor in many ways.
10Similarity: Ghostface & The Heart Eyes Killer Wear Unorthodox Masks
The Scream & Heart Eyes Villains Don’t Have Ordinary Masks
Most of the best traditional slasher villains wear a mask that’s distinctive, so the mask alone isn’t necessarily odd. However, the masks aren’t ordinary masks, like Jason’s hockey mask and Miner’s gas mask, and they don’t look humanoid, like Michael Myers and Leatherface.
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Instead, Ghostface’s mask is elongated and sheet white, with odd-shaped eyes, nose, and mouth holes. They almost resemble a more exaggerated version of The Scream by Edvard Munch.
Heart Eyes is similar to a BDSM mask, but it has some significant changes that make it feel unusual. Most notably, the mask includes heart-shaped eyes that protrude slightly like goggles, and they glow bright red when turned on. Plus, the mouth has a permanent smile that’s unhuman and eerie.
9Difference: The Heart Eyes Killer Has Night Vision
The Heart Eyes Killer Can Navigate The Police Precinct In The Dark
One of the most exciting parts of the Heart Eyes Killer’s costume is the fact that the eponymous mask feature has a practical purpose. When the eyes glow, the killer can see in the dark. This practical and unbelievably cool ability makes it easier for them to hunt at nighttime or see when the lights go out.
In contrast, Ghostface has slightly impaired vision because the mask has black mesh over the eyes. Thekillers behind the Ghostface maskhave never been particularly coordinated in the dark. Unfortunately, the costume would need a serious redesign to integrate night vision into the mask, and fans would revolt because of a mask design change.
8Similarity: Ghostface & The Heart Eyes Killer Are More Than One Person
The Scream Franchise & Heart Eyes Use The Same Killer Twist
Out of all sixScreammovies, onlyScream 3had a singleactor playing Ghostface. Most of the movies boasted two Ghostface killers, andScream VIhas three different killers. The films including multiple killers help maintain the mystery. Killers can keep their identity a secret if they just orchestrate a fake attack by another killer in a public place.
Quinn Bailey
Ethan Landry
Heart Eyesuses the same technique andtwist for the Heart EyesKiller. The villains include Detective Janine Shaw, David, and Eli. The movie hints heavily at Janine Shaw being the killer, but it throws off suspicions by having either David or Eli attack Shaw alongside Ally in the police precinct. Unfortunately, future slasher films should hesitate to reveal two killers since that could become predictable and ruin the twist.
7Difference: The Heart Eyes Killer Marks The Kills With Holiday-Themed Calling Cards
The Heart Eyes Killer Marks His Crime Scenes With Valentine’s Day Symbols
Many horror villains leave calling cards as an egotistical way to claim a kill, gain attention, threaten survivors, and taunt the police. Both Ghostface and the Heart Eyes Killer fall into this category, which speaks to the mentality of the murderers. However, their killing cards differ in one significant way.
Ghostface’s calling cards are almost always the same, with them marking the majority of their kills with a white Ghostface mask near the body. The Heart Eyes Killer differs in that they don’t always have the same calling card, but they’re all Valentine’s Day-themed. This includes arrows and throwing knives with hearts in them, a heart made out of rose petals, and a wedding ring.
6Similarity: Ghostface & The Heart Eyes Killer Inspire Fanboy Killers
Scream & Heart Eyes Comment On The Fanboy Phenomenon
ScreamandHeart Eyesboth make meta-commentary on horror, crime, obsession, and the psychology of killers. Because of this tone, I think it’s fitting that both franchises choose to highlight the disturbing phenomenon of individuals obsessing over serial killers.
InScream(2022), Richie Kirsch is a fan of the in-universeStabmovies, which Ghostface inspires, and he takes it upon himself to emulate the killer. Similarly, Jason Carvey and Greg Bruckner want to finish Kirsch’sStabmovie by copying Ghostface at the start ofScream VI.
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Heart Eyes takes the same tactic, revealing that the killer unmasked at the drive-in theater is a man named Eli. He is a fan of the Heart Eyes Killer, who joined David and Janine’s relationship, making them a throuple. However, David and Janine never saw him as anything other than a disposable fanboy.
5Difference: The Heart Eyes Killer Doesn’t Have One Weapon
Heart Eyes Pays Homage To Numerous Iconic Killer Weapons
Even though different characters have taken on the role of Ghostface in theScreamfranchise, one thing has remained the same – the weapon they use. The iconic villain primarily uses a Buck 120 hunting knife, which was a nod to the posters forFriday the 13th: The Final Chapter,The New Blood, andJason Takes Manhattan. This provides a distinctive visual that’s recognizable across all the movies.
On the other hand,Heart Eyes’ weapons are homagesto iconic slasher villains. Across the course of the film, the Heart Eyes Killer uses these weapons:
While marketing and headlines forHeart Eyeshave leaned into the crossbow as the villain’s preferred weapon, the machete gets just as much screentime and kills. As such, the Heart Eyes Killer doesn’t have a standout weapon.
4Similarity: Ghostface & The Heart Eyes Killer Make Taunting Phone Calls
Heart Eyes Mirrors Scream’s Phone Calls
Throughout theScreamfranchise, the villain is known for making taunting phone calls to their victims. Most of thebest quotes from Ghostfacehappen over the phone when the character is using a voice modulator.Heart Eyesgives an obvious nod to the previous meta-horror-comedy villain by having the Heart Eyes Killer call Ally on the phone when she’s at the airport trying to catch Jay.
The character uses a voice modulator and delivers the line, “Roses are red; violets are black. Guess who’s with me and not coming back?” The mix of whimsical and threatening tones feels very Ghostface-esque. Luckily,Heart Eyesdidn’t overdo it by having the Heart Eyes Killer make repeated phone calls that sound like Ghostface.
3Difference: The Heart Eyes Killer Doesn’t Have A Personal Connection To The Victims
The Heart Eyes Killer Chooses Couples At Random
One of the consistencies with each leading person under the Ghostface mask is the fact that they’re targeting the victims for personal reasons (minus the fanboy killers). The sidekicks have less driving force or motive against the specific victims, but they still connect somehow.
The Heart Eyes Killer is drastically different in that there’s little rhyme or reason to their victims. The only throughline is the fact that the victims are in a relationship, except for Ally and Jay, and the Heart Eyes Killer chooses between all the couples seemingly at random. This proves a very different psychological profile between the two groups of serial killers.
2Similarity: Ghostface & The Heart Eyes Killer Are Surprisingly Human
The Scream & Heart Eyes Killers Make Interesting Choices
One characteristic of slasher villains that can decrease the stakes of the films is the fact that they seem impossible to defeat. Even human slasher villains have an almost supernatural quality to them, making them seem omnipresent. However,ScreamandHeart Eyesprove that slasher villains can be extraordinarily human and still scary.
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Ghostface has always felt like a human inside a costume rather than a superhuman being. They stumble or trip, make mistakes, and struggle to hit their victims with their Buck 120. Still, Ghostface manages to induce fear through some vicious murders and psychological games.
While the Heart Eyes Killer is more coordinated with their weapons than Ghostface, they also feel like a human inside a costume. The fact that they hit Adeline in the leg at the start of Heart Eyes, instead of killing her, sets the tone that the villain still experiences human error. Moments like the murderer taunting Jay instead of killing him right away reaffirm this in my mind. That’s an extremely human, emotion-driven decision rather than being practical.
1Difference: The Heart Eyes Killer Murders Recklessly
The Heart Eyes Killer Will Kill Anybody Without Forethought
The final big difference between Ghostface in theScreamfranchise and the Heart Eyes Killer is the fact that the latter villain murders without much forethought or strategic planning. Even though the audience doesn’t get to see their perspective, Ghostface seems to have a plan most of the time, thinking through who they want to murder, when, and how. Having seen theScreammovies many times, I don’t remember many kills that appeared reckless or impulsive.
In contrast, the Heart Eyes Killer feels absolutely reckless and impulsive. The murderer has to take out individuals like the cleaning staff, the cab driver, and the police officer because they didn’t seem to think about whether others would be present during the attack. Then, at the drive-in,Heart Eyes’ killer seems to attack anyone and everyone at random, acting on impulse instead of logic. By making the Heart Eyes Killer so impulsive, the writers introduced a different kind of danger than what’s seen inScream.
Heart Eyes
Cast
In Heart Eyes, two co-workers working late on Valentine’s Day are mistaken for a couple by the infamous Heart Eyes Killer. Directed by Josh Ruben and written by Michael Kennedy and Christopher Landon, the film stars Mason Gooding and Olivia Holt.
Scream
1996’s Scream follows a teenage girl who is targeted by a masked killer a year after her mother’s murder who uses horror movies as a deadly game against her and her friends.
