Melissa Barrera Criticizes Scream 7, Cast in Interview

Melissa Barrera, the actress who starred as Sam Carpenter in the recent Scream films, sharply criticized Scream 7 and its cast in a recent interview, three years after her dismissal from the project over social media posts about the Israel-Gaza conflict.

Barrera played the lead role in Scream, released in 2022, and its 2023 sequel Scream VI, both of which revitalized the slasher franchise with strong box office performances of $137 million and $166 million worldwide, respectively. She was set to reprise the role in Scream 7 before production company Spyglass Media Group removed her in November 2023. The decision followed her Instagram posts addressing the violence in Gaza after the October 7 Hamas attacks, which killed about 1,200 people in Israel, including at a music festival. Barrera reshared content accusing Israel of genocide and ethnic cleansing and wrote that Gaza was being treated like a concentration camp, adding, "THIS IS GENOCIDE ETHNIC CLEANSING." She also stated that not all Palestinians are Hamas and not all Jewish people support the Israeli government.

A Spyglass spokesperson said at the time, "We have zero tolerance for antisemitism or the incitement of hate in...