Major Actor Backs out of ‘Scream 7’

Patrick Dempsey’s Detective Mark Kincaid will not be facing off against Ghostface a second time. The actor has confirmed that he will not reprise his Scream 3 role in Scream 7, which is shaping up to be a major franchise reunion with several iconic characters from earlier films set to appear.

“It just didn’t work out and we were dealing with the fires and everything that was going on and the schedule didn’t work out, unfortunately,” Dempsey, who lives in Malibu, told the Variety.

Dempsey first stepped into the shoes of the detective, who investigated the murders of Cotton Weary (Liev Schreiber) and the actors associated with Stab 3, in 2000’s Scream 3. After Sidney’s (Neve Campbell) husband was referred to as “Mark” in the most recent sequels – 2022’s Scream and 2023’s Scream VI – and after Dempsey himself teased on the Today show in October that he was “waiting on the script” and there had been “a conversation about” his return, many fans assumed Dempsey would make his long-awaited return in Scream 7.

While Dempsey is sitting Scream 7 out, the movie will still have a Mark. Joel McHale has been cast to portray Sidney’s husband Mark in the upcoming film, it was announced in January. He joins fellow newcomers Isabel May, Mckenna Grace, Celeste O’Connor, Sam Rechner, Asa Germann, Anna Camp, Ethan Embry, and Mark Consuelos.

In addition to a roster of new faces, Scream 7 is set to bring back several iconic characters from previous installments of the franchise. Matthew Lillard and Scott Foley, who respectively played Ghostface killers Stu Macher and Roman Bridger in Scream (1996) and Scream 3, are confirmed the return. David Arquette, whose Deputy Dewey Riley was killed by Amber Freeman’s Ghostface in Scream (2022), will also return. Since all three characters presumably died in their respective films, it’s unclear how exactly they will be brought back, though it’s possible they will feature in flashbacks or possibly return via AI.

Scream 7’s cast is rounded out by returning stars Campbell, Courteney Cox, Mason Gooding, and Jasmin Savoy Brown.

Kevin Williamson, who wrote the original Scream and also Scream 2 and Scream 4, is directing from a script by Guy Busick, who co-wrote Scream 5 and Scream VI. The film is currently in production and set to hit theaters on Feb. 27, 2026.