They say that necessity is the mother of invention, and after the dramatic exits of Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, and director Christopher Landon f
They say that necessity is the mother of invention, and after the dramatic exits of Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, and director Christopher Landon from the Scream franchise in the last year, Kevin Williamson — OG Scream writer and soon-to-be first-time Scream director — has quite some inventing to do with his upcoming Scream 7. And having made a promising start by convincing the slasher series’ talisman Neve Campbell to get her Sidney Prescott on once again in the modern movie, we’re now getting word that Williamson could be set to bring back another familiar face to go toe-to-toe with Ghostface. That familiar face? Patrick Dempsey, aka Detective Mark Kincaid.
Speaking to American breakfast show TODAY last Thursday, Dempsey was asked whether the return of his on-screen wife Neve Campbell to the Scream fray could open the door to a comeback for his fan-favourite detective. “I’m waiting on the script,” revealed the Ferrari actor, who first — and last — appeared in Scream 3 as homicide detective Kincaid, whose investigations into Ghostface’s ‘Hollywood Murders’ is what brought him and Sidney together. But whilst he hasn’t been given any sides to study just yet, Dempsey did reveal that a comeback for Kincaid — who we learned in Scream is now married to Sid — has at least been discussed. “There has been a conversation about it,” he teased, “but I haven’t seen anything yet, so we’ll see what happens.”
News of Dempsey’s interest in reprising his Kincaid role in Scream 7 only adds to the back-to-basics sense surrounding the slasher franchise’s latest instalment. Not only is Campbell back in front of the camera and Williamson stepping up behind it, but as we reported earlier this year, Courtney Cox is also in talks to bring her Gale Weathers — the only character to have appeared in every single Scream movie thus far — aboard for more thrills, chills, and claret-coloured spills here. We’ll find out exactly who’s back — and for just how long — when Scream 7 hits cinemas on 27 February, 2026.
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