Melissa Barrera calls returning Scream 7 cast 'scabby', questions box-office tally
Melissa Barrera has sharply criticized her former Scream franchise colleagues, calling them “scabby” for returning to the latest installment after she was fired from the series. In an interview published Wednesday, the actress said those who came back “have to with that,” and claimed the production leaned on “nostalgia-bait” to move forward without her.
Asked whether it was “scabby” for previous cast members to rejoin the project following her exit, Barrera replied, “Oh, one hundred per cent. I think they all are.
And they have to with that.” She added, “The only way they were able to make that movie after what happened was to nostalgia-bait as much as possible.” Barrera, 35, who most recently starred in the action series The Copenhagen Test, spoke as the franchise’s newest chapter continues to draw attention.
Scream 7, which was released in February, brought back a roster of franchise veterans including Courteney Cox, Neve Campbell, David Arquette, Matthew Lillard and Scott Foley. The film is the highest-grossing in the series, taking in $US215 million worldwide — a figure Barrera disputed.
“I think they lied about the numbers,” she said. “I don’t think it made that much money.” Requests for comment were sent to Spyglass Media and Paramount Pictures. Barrera was fired from Scream 7 in November 2023 after she posted comments about the Israel-Hamas war that the studio characterized as antisemitic.
The following day, her Scream 5 and Scream 6 co-star Jenna Ortega dropped out of the film, which Ortega later said “had nothing to do with pay or scheduling” and “was all kind of falling apart.” Barrera suggested Ortega’s departure was not an act of support for her, saying, “That’s not the reality of things.” The actress said she received messages of encouragement from some in the industry but “no action,” describing “ten torturous months of uncertainty, and no work, and suffering” after being let go.
She added that she continues to feel support from fans while performing in the musical Titanique on Broadway: “At the stage door, I sign ‘Scream’ things every night… and they can’t ever take that away from me.” Barrera previously told Collider she feels she has “gotten closure” on her exit, noting it was “always meant to be two movies” for her under her contract.