Sheriff Dewey is back.
David Arquette has confirmed that he will appear in the recently-announced relaunch of the Scream series. The movie is set to be directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (Ready or Not) and written by James Vanderbilt (Zodiac) and Guy Busick (Castle Rock).
Here’s what Arquette said:
“I am thrilled to be playing Dewey again and to reunite with my Scream family, old and new. Scream has been such a big part of my life, and for both the fans and myself, I look forward to honoring Wes Craven’s legacy.”
Apparently Arquette won’t be the only cast member returning. Spyglass Media Group has suggested that other performers from the previous films will return. Does that mean Neve Campbell and Courteney Cox will be joining the cast? You have to assume that’s in the cards.
Vanderbilt and the others involved are adamant that Scream 5 will be a proper homage and love letter to the original movie. They promise this isn’t some cash-grab that will disregard and discredit the films that came before it. I get the sense that they imagine their Scream like David Gordon Green’s recent Halloween, a movie that continues the story and evolves it while bringing back legacy characters and boiling things down to what made the first film so special. I think that’s the right approach. No matter the quality of the sequels, the original Scream is still damn magical. If that is the sort of movie that Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett want to make then I am more than on board.
Scream 5 is set to start filming later this year once the COVID-19 crisis passes. You can expect that we will be hearing more casting news in the weeks and months ahead. I’m sure Jamie Kennedy is waiting patiently by the phone.