David Arquette is undoubtedly one of the most beloved actors to emerge from the Scream franchise.
His portrayal of the awkward, yet-frequently-heroic Dewey Riley endeared him to many. So, it was no surprise when a collective mourning overtook the Scream fandom, following Dewey’s on-screen death in 2022’s fifth entry.
However, like numerous other legacy characters, living and dead, Arquette will return in 2026’s Scream 7. Although fans rejoiced, we still wondered how and why the character was brought back.
Whilst we may still not know how Arquette will be involved in Scream 7, now we know why.
According to several reliable sources, Arquette’s continued involvement in the franchise is down to his ex-wife Courteney Cox.
Cox, known for her six-film run as Gale Weathers in the Scream franchise, reportedly made her return for the seventh entry dependent on Arquette’s involvement.
According to a source:
“Rebuilding the Scream franchise from the ground up has been a huge part of Courteney’s life for the last year, after the original plans for the seventh film imploded, and the stars and director left the project.”
This, of course, is referring to the exits of Jenna Ortega, Melissa Barrera, and Christopher Landon in November 2023. The upheaval put Scream 7 on ice for quite some time, but now we’re learning that Cox has been instrumental in how the seventh entry has been reshaped:
“Courteney has helped turn the re-imagined movie into a once-in-a-lifetime reunion of the classic 1996 original, bringing back Matthew Lillard and even her ex-husband David into the cast, despite the fact that their characters had been definitively killed off in previous instalments.”
The source continued that the former couple “still have a strong friendship,” and that Cox felt she “needed David by her side, as she takes the Scream movies very seriously.”
So, it appears Courteney Cox has been much more heavily involved in Scream 7’s creative process than anyone realised. Of course, this isn’t entirely surprising, as Cox acted as an executive producer on 2023’s Scream VI.
Fans have commended Cox’s devotion to the Scream franchise, applauding her affection for her co-workers, and the tireless efforts to get Scream 7 back together.
With Cox on board, and far more involved than we realised, we’re sure Scream 7 is in safe hands.
The movie is currently set to release on February 27th 2026, but this may be subject to change.
