Actress Melissa Barrera has been dropped from the highly anticipated film Scream VII in light of her controversial social media posts regarding the Israel-Hamas War. Barrera took to Instagram stories to express her views, drawing parallels between the situation in Gaza and a concentration camp, and accusing Israel of genocide and ethnic cleansing.
The decision to remove Barrera from the upcoming Scream installment came after Spyglass, the company behind the iconic horror franchise, issued a statement condemning antisemitism and hate speech. They made it clear that they have a zero tolerance policy for such behavior, prompting the swift action against Barrera.
This isn’t the first time Barrera has been vocal about the war on social media. Since October 7, when Hamas invaded Israel, she has been actively sharing her thoughts and opinions regarding the conflict. However, her latest comments were seen as crossing the line, leading to her ousting from the film.
Barrera played a lead role in the successful 2022 film Scream, as well as in the recently released Scream VI. Her departure from Scream VII has led to some necessary adjustments in the production team. Christopher Landon, the filmmaker behind the popular Happy Death Day franchise, has taken over as the director of the film, replacing the original filmmakers, Radio Silence.
Filming for Scream VII had not yet commenced, and the project faced delays due to ongoing strikes by actors and writers. With Barrera’s firing, Spyglass is expected to regroup and reevaluate their plans for the film. Paramount, who distributed the previous installments, is likely to handle distribution once again.
Filmmaker Christopher Landon expressed disappointment over Barrera’s dismissal, emphasizing that it was not his decision. It remains to be seen how this change in casting will impact the overall production and reception of Scream VII.
In a related development on the same day, it was reported that actor Susan Sarandon was dropped by talent agency UTA due to comments she made at a pro-Palestinian rally. The entertainment industry’s response to controversial statements during conflicts continues to shape the landscape of Hollywood.
