Despite being fired from the “Scream” franchise in 2023, Melissa Barrera has made it clear that her real issue is with Spyglass Media Group, not the films themselves.
When asked if she’d ever return for a future “Scream” film during a recent JustWatch interview, the actress responded, “not with the company that currently holds the rights.” (Spyglass is a co-producer and the current rights holder.)
“I love the franchise,” she continued. “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.”
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Barrera’s comments pertain to the company’s claim that she was acting antisemitically when she shared social media posts criticizing Israel amid the war in Gaza. At the time, Spyglass had said that it had “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.”
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.”
The “In the Heights” actress had starred in 2022’s “Scream” and that year’s “Scream VI” before she was ousted from the franchise. “Scream 7” was released earlier this year. Recently, she spoke about how “beautiful” she found the support around Macklemore to be following his removal from Ed Sheeran’s tour for his support of Palestine.
“It was so beautiful to see Finneas and the band and all the opening acts pulling out in support of Macklemore,” the actress said (via AP). “It made me emotional. You know, I didn’t get that when it happened to me. I didn’t have any of that happen. It was too soon. People were too scared. But it’s good to see that almost three years later, at least things have changed.”