Melissa Barrera has ruled out any return to the Scream franchise unless the property changes hands entirely from its current studio leadership.
Barrera, 34, was dropped from Scream 7 in November 2023 over social media posts about the Israel-Hamas war in which she expressed solidarity with Palestinian civilians. Spyglass Media Group defended the firing by asserting 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.” The actress was also dropped by agency WME and endured months of industry blacklisting following the studio’s decision.
Speaking in an interview with Just Watch, Barrera addressed whether she would ever consider stepping back into the slasher universe and did not mince words regarding the executives who dismissed her.
“No, not with the company that currently holds the rights,” Barrera stated. “I love the franchise. I had an amazing time making those movies. But a lot of like the, 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.”
The actress made clear that the bridge with current management is burned beyond repair.
“Even with an apology, I wouldn’t go back to work with them,” she added. “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 more, into hands that I think honor Wes Craven’s legacy more, I think yeah.”
Barrera led 2022’s Scream and 2023’s Scream VI as the daughter of original killer Billy Loomis. She has since rebounded with projects including the 2024 horror-thriller Abigail and the Peacock espionage series The Copenhagen Test alongside Simu Liu.
Her public stance coincides with candid admissions from franchise staple Matthew Lillard, who originated the role of killer Stu Macher in the 1996 original. Reflecting on his own choices, Lillard confessed he deeply regrets not speaking up in Barrera’s defense when the firing occurred.
“When that happened to Melissa, the whole world didn’t pipe up,” Lillard admitted. “But she was a year early on what the f—‘s going on. But the whole world should have popped up and said, ‘She’s right.’ And they didn’t. And that’s brutal.”
Lillard revealed he felt “ashamed” and “embarrassed” after agreeing to return to the franchise without taking a stand for his former colleague.
“I went back to do Scream, and I got called out. And I’m like, ‘Oh, f—. That’s brutal.’ I feel bad about that. I feel ashamed about that,” Lillard said.
“Because in that moment I was so excited to go back, I didn’t really think about Melissa and that journey. I didn’t say no… I blew that. I’m on the wrong side of history for that. I still like being in the movie [but] it may not have been the best idea.”
Barrera’s firing in November 2023 came after she posted on social media about the Israel-Hamas war, expressing solidarity with Palestinian civilians. Spyglass Media Group’s public statement condemning her posts as hate speech triggered widespread industry fallout for the actress, including her separation from WME and what she described as months of professional blacklisting. The studio never retracted its characterization of her statements despite subsequent developments in global discourse around the conflict.