LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Melissa Barrera, who wooed the audience and critics alike with her role as Sam in 'Scream 5' and 'Scream 6', has been "quietly dropped" from the franchise after she made a series of posts criticizing Israel's policy amid the country's ongoing war with Hamas.
A source told Variety that the actress, known for playing Sam Carpenter in the thriller franchise, has been removed from the cast list over her alleged stance in the Israel-Hamas conflict. However, this has angered a major section of fans who demanded a similar repercussion for 'Stranger Things' star Noah Schnapp after his "Zionism is sexy" video.
Ever since the conflict began in the Middle Eastern countries, the Mexican-born actress has been sharing messages criticizing the Israeli authorities and the Western media.
The 33-year-old 'Bed Rest' star also posted once, “Western media only shows the [Israeli] side. Why do they do that, I will let you deduce for yourself," according to Variety.
In another one of her Instagram Stories, Barrera said "Gaza is currently being treated like a concentration camp," before adding, "Cornering everyone together, with no where to go, no electricity no water … People have learnt nothing from our histories."
She continued, "And just like our histories, people are still silently watching it all happen. THIS IS GENOCIDE & ETHNIC CLEANSING," as per The Hollywood Reporter.
In another post, she recounted her colonial history and said, "I too come from a colonized country."
Barrera hails from Mexico which was colonized by Spain for almost three hundred years.
In the same post, comparing Mexico with Palestine, she wrote, "Palestine WILL be free." She continued, "They tried to bury us. They didn't know we were seeds," Daily Mail reported.
Barrera has been actively posting stories showing her support for the Palestinians. Following this, she was allegedly fired from the 'Scream' film franchise.
A spokesperson from Spyglass told Variety, “Spyglass’ stance is unequivocally clear: 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.”
She also made a series of posts on Tuesday, November 21, 2023, slamming Israel.
However, Barrera's ousting has incited anger among her fans as they asked whether Schnapp was to suffer any consequence for his speech.
Recently, Schnapp shared a video on his social media where he and his friends were holding up stickers that read "Zionism is sexy," as per The Wrap. While he faced intense criticism from social media users, the 19-year-old actor is still expected to make an appearance in the upcoming 'Stranger Things 5'.
Who owns Spyglass Media Group?
Spyglass Media Group's current CEO is Gary Barber. Barber, along with Roger Birnbaum founded Spyglass Entertainment in 1989.
The original company became defunct in 2012. However, it was relaunched as Spyglass Media Group in 2019.
At present, Lantern Entertainment holds the majority portion of the company with Lionsgate holding 18.9% stakes. Warner Bros Pictures, Cineworld Group, and Eagle Pictures hold minority shares of the company.
Internet furious after Melissa Barrera fired from 'Scream'
Internet erupted over Barrera's firing from the 'Scream' franchise. Several fans even highlighted the contrast between her situation and Schnapp's situation where the 'Stranger Things' star did not face any consequence for his controversial post.
One of the fans directly put forward the situation in direct words and said, "Noah schnapp: “supporting genocide is sexy!” (no consequences) melissa barrera: “innocent children, women and men in palestine shouldn’t die” (gets fired)."
"Well I guess I’m done with the scream series," said a disgruntled fan.
Another fan unearthed that the 2023 movie 'Thanksgiving' is from the same production company, and said, "Worth pointing out Thanksgiving is by the same production company Spyglass Entertainment, might be time for a 100% second weekend box office drop off?"
"That's why I say power to us. The people. We don't watch that movie she got fired from. This poor woman saw injustice because she dared to have a voice. A voice. Unlike others who are happily silent, she chose to talk. So we honor her by boycotting that movie," said someone else.
"Wow imagine....being against genocide is considered controversial.....I wonder why.....," another fan chimed in.
Someone else remarked, "Hypocrisy at its finest. I don’t like Noah Schnapp. He seems rude. I don’t even want to meet him. If that’s the case I’d rather meet Melissa Barrera because she seems kind."
"This is so lame. No matter how good or bad people's political takes are they shouldn't be fired unless they've been directly involved or instigated something," observed another fan.
"The double standards are showing also...its so annoying, I actually liked Noah Schnapp but when I found out what he did, how can anyone dismiss this behavior??" asked another fan.
When will 'Scream 7' be released?
The film's release date has not yet been finalized as the production of the film is yet to commence. The film is slated to be directed by Christopher Landon of 'Freaky' and 'We Have a Ghost' fame, reports Digital Spy.
Before Melissa Barrera's ousting from the series, the cast of 'Scream 6' which was released in March 2023, was supposed to return for the next sequel.
While Barrera was supposed to reprise her role as Sam, Jenna Ortega, Mason Gooding, and Jasmin Savoy Brown will be returning as Tara, Chad, and Mindy, respectively.
Speculation is Courteney Cox will also return as Gale Weathers after surviving her ordeal with Ghostface. Apart from that, Hayden Panettiere's Kirby Reed is also expected to make an appearance.
