The horror genre has been experiencing a renaissance for years now, leading to some of the best horror movies returning to theaters with new sequels. That includes Scream, which has released three new movies in quick succession (streaming with a Paramount+ subscription). The seventh movie brought back Neve Campbell's Sidney Prescott, shortly after Melissa Barrera was fired from her role as Sam Carpenter. And the latter actress recently threw shade at Scream 7, as well as her co-stars who returned for the latest installment in the horror franchise.
While Melissa Barrera was the protagonist of the fifth and sixth Scream movies, she was fired by the studio due to her comments about the conflict between Hamas and Israel. Jenna Ortega later dropped out as Tara, but other members of the Core Four reprised their roles in Scream 7. During a conversation with Variety about her role in Titanique on Broadway, Barrera was asked it felt like her co-stars were "crossing the picket line" by returning for the seventh film. She responding resoundingly with:
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.
Well, she certainly didn't mince her words. It sounds like she isn't happy about actors Jasmin Savoy Brown and Mason Gooding, who play Mindy and Chad Meeks-Martin, continuing their Scream tenures after her firing. While Brown spoke about missing Barrera ahead of filming Scream 7, she ultimately took the gig and made her third appearance in the slasher property. And it sounds like the In the Heights actress didn't appreciate that decision.
Aside from Gooding and Brown, the only other co-star who came back for Scream 7 was Courteney Cox. Although since she's been playing Gale Weathers since the 1996 original and is the only actor to appear in every single Scream movie, I'm not sure she's in the same category as the newer actors.
Melissa Barrera's interviewer went so far as to say that Scream 7 "sucked", with the actress responding with:
I know. And I think they lied about the numbers. I don’t think it made that much money. But at the stage door, I sign Scream things every night. People who love me from those movies are coming to see the show, and they can’t ever take that away from me.
Talk about a conspiracy theory. When it was released Scream 7 broke box office records for the franchise, but it seems like Barrera doesn't believe that reporting. Although that doesn't mean she isn't proud of her time starring as final girl Sam Carpenter, as she continues to sign merchandise for fans who see her in Titanique.
The entire Scream franchise is streaming now on Paramount+, including Scream 7 which arrived earlier this year as part of the 2026 movie release list. We'll just have to wait and see if any of her co-stars respond to her soon-to-be-viral comments.
