Mexican actress Melissa Barrera is breaking her silence after being dropped from the upcoming movie "Scream 7".
“First and foremost I condemn Anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. I condemn hate and prejudice of any kind against any group of people,” Barrera said in a statement shared on Instagram Stories.
Barrera was dismissed from the pic due to comments she made about the Israel-Palestine conflict on social media.
“As a Latina, a proud Mexicana, I feel the responsibility of having a platform that allows me the privilege of being heard, and therefore I have tried to use it to raise awareness about issues I care about and to lend my voice to those in need,” Barrera’s statement continued.
“Every person on this earth- regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation or socio-economic status- deserves equal human rights, dignity and, of course, freedom,".
She added, “I believe a group of people are NOT their leadership, and that no governing body should be above criticism. I pray day and night for no more deaths, for no more violence, and for peaceful co-existence. I will continue to speak out for those that need it most and continue to advocate for peace and safety, for human rights and freedom.”
“Silence is not an option for me,” Barrera concluded.
Spyglass Media went public with the reason behind the decision, saying, “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.”
Barrera, who came to fame in Starz’s series Vida before being propelled to Warner Bros. feature musical In the Heights and 2022’s Scream and this year’s Scream VI as Sam Carpenter, sister of Jenna Ortega’s Tara Carpenter, reposted a series of Pro-Palestinian posts to her Instagram stories, which were interpreted as being anti-Semitic by those close to the movie production.
Post SAG-AFTRA strike, Spyglass Media has yet to announce any returning cast members or new cast for the pic.
The Scream franchise has grossed close to $911M worldwide through six movies. The last two movies were produced and financed by Spyglass Media, which has control over the Dimension library, and released worldwide by Paramount Pictures.
"Scream” fans decried Spyglass Media’s decision to part ways with Barrera. Some were so upset by the studio’s decision to oust Barrera that they vowed to boycott “Scream 7.”
"Scream 7" filmmaker Christopher Landon has also responded to the news of its two-time franchise star‘s firing by Spyglass Media.
“This is my statement: 💔 Everything sucks. Stop yelling. This was not my decision to make,” Landon wrote on X and removed it thereafter.
A day after Barrera was axed from the pic, it was confirmed that Jenna Ortega would also depture the franchise.
Follow the latest news on Google News
