Teaching Mrs. Tingle is a 1999 dark comedy-thriller film and the directing debut of screenwriter Kevin Williamson, who wrote Scream and Scream 2 also from Dimension Films. The film stars Helen Mirren, Katie Holmes, Marisa Coughlan, Barry Watson, and Jeffrey Tambor and was released on August 20, 1999. It was originally titled Killing Mrs. Tingle, but was delayed and retitled due to the uproar over teen violence in films after the Columbine High School massacre. The film follows a trio of seniors who must prove their innocence to their vindictive history teacher. But this proves difficult, especially when they have her tied to a bed in her own house. The film received mainly negative reviews from critics and was a box office failure. It has since gained a small cult following.