The seventh installment of the franchise opened to a record $97 million at the global box office.

Fired Scream star Melissa Barrera doubts Scream 7 success: ‘I think they lied about the numbers’

The seventh installment of the franchise opened to a record $97 million at the global box office.

By Derek Lawrence

Derek Lawrence

Derek Lawrence is a former associate editor at **. He left EW in 2022.

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May 6, 2026 2:29 p.m. ET

Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega in 'Scream VI'. Credit:

Paramount Pictures

- Melissa Barrera doesn't believe the record-breaking success of *Scream 7.*

- The former *Scream* star was fired ahead of production.

- Barrera thinks her returning costars crossed a picket line and "have to live with that."

*Scream 7* scored the best opening weekend in franchise history, but fired *Scream* star Melissa Barrera is skeptical of the numbers for the "nostalgia-bait" film.

In the fifth and sixth installments of *Scream*, Barrera played Sam Carpenter, the daughter of original Ghostface Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich). But, despite being the new lead scream queen, she was dropped by the production company Spyglass Media Group for making pro-Palestine statements on social media and criticizing the actions of Israel in its war with Hamas. *Scream 7 *would then undergo a full creative overhaul, and even with mostly poor reviews the movie outgrossed *Scream VI*'s debut by $20 million.

"I think they lied about the numbers," Barrera told *Variety*, without providing evidence. "I don't think it made that much money." And when the interviewer said *Scream 7* "sucked," Barrera replied, "I know."

** has reached out to Paramount Pictures, which distributed *Scream 7*, for comment. According to the independent media-measurement company Comscore, the film opened to $97 million worldwide and ultimately grossed more than $200 million globally.

At the time of Barrera's firing, production company Spyglass Media Group said it had "zero tolerance for antisemitism or the incitement of hate in any form." The actress responded by condemning antisemitism, while still emphasizing the importance of using her platform "to raise awareness about issues I care about."

Barrera, Courteney Cox, and Neve Campbell in 2022's 'Scream'.

Paramount Pictures

Shortly after Barrera's ouster, her onscreen sister, Jenna Ortega, also departed, as did incoming director Christopher Landon. Original *Scream* writer Kevin Williamson and star Neve Campbell were then brought back, with Campbell's return being especially notable given she sat out *Scream VI* over a pay dispute.

The last two films had been built around the new core four of Barrera, Ortega, Jasmin Savoy Brown, and Mason Gooding. And while Barrera and Ortega were gone, Brown and Gooding reprised their roles as Mindy and Chad Meeks-Martin.

Asked by *Variety* if she felt like her former costars were "basically crossing the picket line" and were "scabby," Barrera said, "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."

Barrera added that she didn't receive much public backing after she was let go from *Scream*: "I got some messages of support from people in the industry, but what I found is that private messages with no action mean nothing."

Why aren't Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega in 'Scream 7'?

How 'Scream 7' handles Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega's franchise exits

Currently starring in the Broadway musical *Titaníque*, Barrera won't hasn't let the sour end of her run with the franchise ruin what *Scream* means to her and her career.

"People who love me from those movies are coming to see the show, and they can’t ever take that away from me," she said. "*Scream *is always going to be a big part of me because it was two years of my life, it gave me a lot, and I’m grateful specifically to [directors] Matt [Bettinelli-Olpin] and Tyler [Gillett] who gave me that shot. That hasn’t been soured for me. They don’t have that power."

Meanwhile, *Scream 8* is officially in development with writers Nora and Lilla Zuckerman.

[*This article has been with context about *Scream 7*'s box office performance.*]

Original Article on Source

Source: “EW Movies”