UPDATE: Scoop confirmed. As I reported a few hours ago, Barrera has been fired. She’s been told to pack up her things and not come back. ‘Scream VII’ is supposed to start production in March 2024.
Spyglass, the studio behind the ‘Scream’ movies, has released a statement about Barrera’s firing:
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.
Spyglass went on to cite two recent social media posts that led to Barbera’s firing, including her resharing a story on Instagram that accused Israel of “genocide and ethnic cleansing” and another one about distorting “the Holocaust to boost the Israeli arms industry.”
Barrera didn’t stay silent. Soon after her firing, she posted a cryptic statement on Instagram, writing “At the end of the day, I'd rather be excluded for who I include, than be included for who I exclude.”
EARLIER: I know Variety is working on this story, and I’m not quite sure when they will be posting their more in-depth piece on it.
What I can report to you is that Melissa Barrera was just fired from “Scream VII”. This might have to do with her statements about the Israel-Hamas war, but I can’t 100% confirm that. Barrera was the star of the last two ‘Scream’ movies, playing protagonist Sam Carpenter.
More to come, I’m sure …