Although she was unceremoniously fired from the franchise three years ago, Melissa Barrera remains a Scream fan.
The actress, who was fired for supporting “Free Palestine” in 2023, recently explained that her issue is with Spyglass Media Group, whose leadership “never apologized” for accusing her of antisemitism over her response to the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel.
“Not with the company that currently holds the rights,” she said on JustWatch of whether she would return. “I love the franchise. I had an amazing time making those movies. But a lot of the hate and the difficulty that I’ve faced in the last years is because the leadership of that company made it a point to label me something that I’m not, and they never apologized, even when I was proven right.”
Barrera continued, “Even with an apology, I wouldn’t go back to work with them. So, not that I’m holding my breath. I don’t think they have that ability. But if the franchise were ever to leave those hands and go into hands that I think honor Wes Craven’s legacy more, I think yeah.”
Spyglass fired Barrera in November 2023 over her social media posts on the Israel-Hamas conflict and the “atrocities being committed against Palestinians,” with the company explaining they have “zero tolerance for antisemitism or the incitement of hate in any form, including false references to genocide, ethnic cleansing, Holocaust distortion or anything that flagrantly crosses the line into hate speech.”
Following her ousting, Jenna Ortega also exited the franchise, later noting that the sequel “was all kind of falling apart” without Barrera to play its new “final girl” Sam Carpenter. Director Christopher Landon dropped out of the project as well, citing “highly aggressive and really scary” death threats targeting his children.
Neve Campbell was then brought back to reprise her role as OG “final girl” Sidney Campbell for Scream 7 in March 2024, with original Scream (1996) writer Williamson on board to direct. She previously sat out Scream VI (2023) over a low pay offer.
As the seventh installment of the slasher franchise premiered at Paramount Studios in February, “Free Palestine” protesters lined up outside the entrance to the lot. Back when the first trailer for Scream 7 was released last October, fans quickly began slamming the movie on social media, calling for a boycott.
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