Jamie Kennedy Revealed David Arquette Could Have Been Out of His ‘Scream’ Job

[Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for the previous Scream films.]

Almost 25 years after his onscreen death in Scream 2, actor Jamie Kennedy revealed fans still approach him about his role as Randy in the first two films. While he expressed some disappointment that he was no longer part of the movies, he also said some interesting things about why David Arquette’s longevity once came as a surprise.

What did Kennedy say about how his role in Scream still influences interactions with his fans? And why did he say Arquette could have already been out of the job?

Jamie Kennedy was a fan favorite as Randy Meeks – horror film fanatic

For some horror fans, Kennedy’s portrayal of Randy Meeks was educational. He taught audiences the rules of surviving, though it turns out they’re not guaranteed to work.

Unfortunately, Randy was a casualty of Scream 2 — something Kennedy apparently learned just days before they filmed the scene. That was because the actors were provided their scripts just pages at a time. So, they weren’t aware if their characters would live, die, or end up being under the mask in the end.

Kennedy recently spoke about Randy’s death, saying “it would have been nice” for the character to keep going. “Yeah, I would have liked not to have died,” he told Yahoo. “But I understand people have to die.”

But he said people still approach him to say they wish Randy hadn’t died. About the decision to kill Randy off, he said, “In hindsight, they would’ve liked to keep him.”

He also revealed Arquette’s Dewey should have been killed off already – but plans changed based on audience reactions.

Jamie Kennedy: David Arquette was supposed to be done after ‘Scream’

According to Kennedy, Arquette wouldn’t be returning to the upcoming Scream film if the original film ended as Wes Craven originally planned.

That’s right. There was a version where Deputy Dewey died, meaning Arquette would have been out after the first movie. But test audiences didn’t like that, of course. Regarding the response, Kennedy said, “David will tell you, they did a thing with the ‘thumbs up’ and he came back to life.”

So, Craven added a scene to show that Dewey made it out of the brutal stabbing alive – which kind of became his gimmick throughout the franchise. And with that decision, he became a survivor, as did Arquette’s job.

While Kennedy wasn’t so lucky with Randy, that doesn’t mean he’s not interested in the films anymore. Recently, he shared his opinions about which of the remaining original characters he thinks will be kept safe from Ghostface.

The ‘Scream’ survivors: Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox, and David Arquette

According to Kennedy, all three of the surviving Scream cast – Arquette, Courtney Cox, and Neve Campbell – are too big to kill off. He said that’s because Cox is a “huge star,” Campbell holds the franchise together, and Arquette’s Dewey almost died already. “I think the stars are stars,” he noted.

But let’s not forget the first film advertised Drew Barrymore as one of its big leads, and fans know what happened to her character. Scream watchers have learned that there really are no rules, though they’re often spoken of. And with a tagline like, “It’s always someone you know,” it sounds like the surviving actors are at risk for character death – or even becoming Ghostface. 

So, maybe Arquette is fortunate to still be in the cast after 25 years – but does that mean Dewey will make it out of the next Scream alive? There’s little doubt audiences will flock to find out.