Nearly two years after Melissa Barrera was fired from the slasher franchise, the official trailer for "Scream 7" has reignited backlash.
Fans of the saga, which launched in 1996 from director Wes Craven and writer Kevin Williamson, quickly began slamming the trailer on social media, following Spyglass Media‘s dismissal of Barrera over her comments on the Israel-Hamas war and the “atrocities being committed against Palestinians,” followed by Jenna Ortega‘s subsequent exit.
Ortega and Barrera starred as sisters Tara and Sam Carpenter in 2022's Scream and this year's Scream VI, injecting new life into the long-running horror franchise.
“This is missing two very important women…” wrote a fan on X with the clip.
“Where the scream franchise ended for me,” another posted with a still from the final shot of the pic.
“We will not be supporting because of what Spyglass did to Melissa Barrera!” a social media user made very clear in a post.
“Boycott Scream 7 and support Scary Movie 6 instead,” wrote a person after the sixth entry in Marlon Wayans’ horror parody trilogy set to film next year, after the original spoofed Scream (1996).
Others have called for support of Barrera’s films. “Anyways YOUR MONSTER (2024) starring Melissa Barrera is streaming on HBO Max and Hulu,” another posted.
Someone noted, “Reminder to everyone: The Copenhagen Test starring Simu Liu and Melissa Barrera is set to premiere on December 27th.”
Meanwhile, the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement has begun a grassroots movement against the sequel, which 22 arts and advocacy organizations have joined.
The Scream 7 boycott comes after Spyglass fired Barrera in November 2023.
The company 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.”
Following her firing, Ortega exited the franchise, later noting that the sequel “Was all kind of falling apart” without Barrera to play its new ‘final girl’ Sam Carpenter.
Set to hit theaters on February 27, 2026, "Scream 7" features returning stars Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Scott Foley, Matthew Lillard, Jasmin Savoy Brown and Mason Gooding, as well as newcomers Joel McHale, Isabel May, Celeste O’Connor, Asa Germann, Mckenna Grace, Sam Rechner, Michelle Randolph, Jimmy Tatro, Anna Camp, Mark Consuelos, and Ethan Embry.
Follow the latest news on Google News
