Scream renewed for shortened third season

Scream still has a pulse. MTV has renewed the slasher series for a six-episode third season, EW has learned.

By comparison, the series inspired by the Wes Craven franchise aired 10 episodes in its first season and 12 in season 2, with a two-hour Halloween special slated for Tuesday, Oct. 18 at 9 p.m. ET.

Details on casting, location, production start date, and showrunners were not available, but the network is looking into working with new showrunners in season 3. Jill Blotevogel was the showrunner in season 1, while Michael Gans and Richard Register took the reins in season 2. Here’s what Gans and Register said could happen in season 3; it’s unclear whether season 3 would mark the show’s final season.

The series, which debuted in June 2015 to 1.03 million viewers, has struggled to find a foothold, capping off its second season with 341,000 viewers.

The upcoming Halloween special picks up eight months after Kieran’s (Amadeus Serafini) arrest. Here’s the logline: “Emma (Willa Fitzgerald) is struggling to focus on her future and who she really is after everything that has happened. Meanwhile, Noah (John Karna) and Stavo (Santiago Segura) have combined forces to create a best-selling graphic novel based on the Kieran Wilcox murders, and Audrey (Bex Taylor-Klaus) has found herself in a new relationship. Since the first anniversary of Piper’s killing spree is upon us, Emma and her friends are determined to be as far from Lakewood as possible, and Stavo has the perfect solution. He and Noah are researching for their next graphic novel, a Lizzy Borden-esque legend on Shallow Grove Island, and suggest the rest of the group come along for the weekend. Just when they thought they were safe, the Lakewood survivors find themselves in another bloody standoff, leaving them to wonder – is an old legend coming back to life, or has murder followed them from Lakewood?”

Watch the trailer here.