Melissa Barrera Calls Scream 7 Cast ‘Scabs’ in Explosive Interview

Melissa Barrera is not holding back. More than a year after being fired from Scream 7 over her social media posts about the Israel-Hamas war, the actress is speaking her mind about the film that replaced her — and the co-stars who showed up to make it.

In a wide-ranging interview with Variety, largely pegged to her Broadway debut in the Céline Dion-inspired musical comedy Titanique, Barrera didn’t soften a single word when the conversation turned to the franchise that made her a horror icon — and then cut her loose. When interviewer Marlow Stern said flatly that Scream 7 “sucked,” Barrera didn’t flinch: “I know. And I think they lied about the numbers. I don’t think it made that much money.”

For context, Scream 7 — which opened in February on a reported $45 million budget — grossed over $207 million globally according to Box Office Mojo, with a domestic opening weekend of nearly $64 million. That’s the best opening in the franchise’s history, and a significant jump from both Scream VI ($167 million) and the 2022 reboot ($138 million). Those numbers are publicly verifiable and not dependent on studio PR. Barrera’s skepticism, whatever its source, runs up against that paper trail.

But it was her comments about her former co-stars that really landed.

“They All Are” — Barrera Calls Out the Cast Who Came Back

When Variety asked whether the actors who signed on for Scream 7 felt like “people basically crossing the picket line,” Barrera was unequivocal: “Oh, one hundred percent. I think they all are. And they have to live with that. The only way they were able to make that movie after what happened was to nostalgia-bait as much as possible.”

That nostalgia play was very real. After Barrera’s firing sent the original production into freefall — co-star Jenna Ortega departed shortly after, followed by planned director Christopher Landon — Paramount pivoted hard. They brought back original franchise screenwriter Kevin Williamson to direct, finally met the pay demands that had kept Neve Campbell out of Scream VI, and leaned into legacy casting with the returns of Matthew Lillard and David Arquette. The gamble worked, at least commercially.

Among the cast who did return were Jasmin Savoy Brown and Mason Gooding, who reprised their roles as twins Mindy and Chad Meeks-Martin — characters whose entire story arc had been tied to Barrera’s Sam Carpenter. Both actors had publicly expressed support for Barrera during the controversy, which makes their return a complicated one in the court of fan opinion. Barrera’s comments make clear she hasn’t forgotten that tension.

Notably, Barrera also pushed back on the idea that Ortega’s exit was an act of solidarity. When the interviewer suggested Ortega walked away to support her, Barrera shook her head. “That’s not the reality of things. I got some messages of support from people in the industry, but what I found is that private messages with no action mean nothing.” Ortega herself has said publicly that production was “crumbling” after the Barrera situation and she no longer wanted to be part of it — but Barrera’s framing suggests she doesn’t see that as the same thing as standing up for her.

The Firing, the Fallout, and What She’s Building Now

Barrera was fired by Spyglass Media Group on November 21, 2023, after posting on Instagram about the Israel-Hamas conflict. One of her posts read: “Gaza is currently being treated like a concentration camp. Cornering everyone together, with nowhere to go, no electricity no water… People have learnt nothing from our histories. And just like our histories, people are still silently watching it all happen. THIS IS GENOCIDE & ETHNIC CLEANSING.”

Spyglass responded with a statement that left no room for interpretation: “We 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.” Barrera was also dropped by her talent agency, WME, in the aftermath.

She denied the antisemitism charge then and she’s still denying it now. “I believe a group of people are not their leadership and that no governing body should be above criticism,” she said at the time. “I pray day and night for no more deaths, for no more violence and for peaceful co-existence. I will continue to speak out for those that need it most and continue to advocate for peace and safety, for human rights and freedom. Silence is not an option for me.”

In the Variety interview, she’s equally direct about the people who came after her. “Those people still deny that what’s going on is a genocide. So, we’re never going to see eye to eye on that. I mean the people that accused me of being antisemitic, and the people that run Spyglass. And they’re wrong. Just factually wrong.”

As for her own career trajectory after the firing — which also cost her representation at WME — Barrera says the fear of being permanently shut out was real, but brief. “The pessimistic side of me was having those thoughts, but the optimistic side of me was like, ‘F*** no. I’m sure the tide will turn.’ And it has. But because I was one of the first to speak up, to this day there are still a lot of people in the industry who have a personal grudge against me.”

One person who didn’t hold a grudge: director Boots Riley, who was the first major filmmaker to reach out and offer her a role after her industry exile began. The part was in his upcoming film I Love Boosters, and while scheduling ultimately kept her from taking it, Barrera spoke warmly about what his outreach meant to her during a dark stretch.

She’s also been keeping a list. “I kept track of the people who vocally came out and said something to defend me at the time. Susan Sarandon. Tatiana Maslany. Hannah Einbinder. Poppy Liu,” she said. “Obviously, Javier Bardem would be a dream to work with. He doesn’t need me to give him any opportunities. But yes, I have lists. I do believe in building a network of people who are like-minded. And for me, this is Chapter 2.”

What She Still Loves About Scream

For all the bitterness, Barrera is careful to separate the franchise she loved from the people who fired her. The In the Heights star — who broke out in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s 2021 film adaptation before landing the role of Sam Carpenter — says her time in the Scream universe genuinely meant something, and credits directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett for giving her the shot.

“Scream is always going to be a big part of me because it was two years of my life, it gave me a lot, and I’m grateful specifically to Matt and Tyler who gave me that shot. That hasn’t been soured for me. They don’t have that power,” she said.

And the fans, she says, have shown up. Every night at the stage door after Titanique — the multiple-Tony-nominated Broadway show where she’s currently making her stage debut — she’s signing Scream memorabilia. “People who love me from those movies are coming to see the show, and they can’t ever take that away from me.”

Chapter 2, it seems, is already underway.