HOLLYWOOD—If there is one movie I have marked on the calendar for 2026 it is “Scream 7.” After “Scream 4” underperformed at the box-office in 2011, I thought the franchise was over, but fast-forward to almost a decade later and we got “Scream (2022),” technically it was “Scream 5” that surprised fans and killed off a fan favorite in Dewey Riley (David Arquette). A year later audiences were thrilled with “Scream VI” and then after the debacle of casting shifts and chaos with star Melissa Barrera being fired, Jenna Ortega leaving and initial director Christopher Landon dropping out, I thought the sequel wasn’t happening.
Well it is and the casting has significantly picked up with Neve Campbell reprising her role as Sidney Prescott/Evans after not appearing in the sixth installment. We also have the return of my fav, Courteney Cox as Gale Weathers, as the reporter who takes no prisoners and I just love her. With that said, the last time we spoke we learned that Mason Gooding was returning as Chad Meeks-Martin, the nephew of fan favorite, Randy (Jamie Kennedy). Gooding’s return was a surprise because without Tara (Ortega) and Sam (Barrera) what would Chad’s role actually be? He never had any interaction with Sidney Prescott in the fifth flick. So imagine my surprise when I learned last week that Jasmin Savoy Brown was also returning as Mindy Meeks-Martin, Chad’s twin sister. Before I speculated Chad could be an opening kill, however, with Mindy returning, I just don’t see it now, nor do I see Mindy as an opening kill. Why?
How would that impact Sidney Prescott’s life for this next movie? Yes, she knows about the twins, but she had NO INTERACTION with them in the previous movie she appeared in. The writers are really going to have to deliver something that makes the twins presence in Sidney’s life or would feel natural and not come across forced. Now I know Celeste O’Connor is portraying a character in the movie that is connected to Sidney’s daughter portrayed by Isabel May who is part of the friend group.
Could it be possible that Celeste’s character is perhaps the niece or cousin to Chad and Mindy? I think that is a possibility. We know the twin’s mother is Martha Meeks, Randy’s sister, but we haven’t met or been introduced to their father, so that means they might have more relatives who could come into the mix. Now I will admit with 1 twin initially appearing in the movie I thought it was a possibility they would be a goner, but with both coming back it feels almost like a GIVEN one of them will die and I fear it will be a brutal death in the process. If the audience feels it, it is going to hurt that much more because we’ve become invested in these two characters over the past two films.
Now the biggest casting news that has everyone in a tizzy is that Patrick Dempsey is NOT returning as Mark Kincaid for “Scream 7.” You might say why is that important. We all thought Mark and Sidney were together and had kids. Well, it looks like a change of events because the Mark hint in “Scream 5” and “Scream 6” is in reference to another Mark, Mark Evans who is being portrayed by Joel McHale. Look, McHale is known as a comedic actor, so I am eager to see him in a dramatic role, which I think is what the writers are going for here, but where the hell is Mark Kincaid?
The audience was invested in that character because we met him in “Scream 3,” we know him. This Mark Evans, we don’t know him, so it is going to be hard to get audiences invested in him in such a short time frame. Now if the writers want to truly deliver a curveball to fans, they can explain that Mark Kincaid and Sidney Prescott got divorced and she moved on with Mark Evans.
I’m not sure what the writers have cooked up, but it has to be something that makes sense and works seamlessly into the new story. I am sure more casting news will be dropped in the coming weeks and with a cast that is becoming more stacked by the minute I cannot wait until February 26, 2026 for “Scream 7.”