Scream franchise star Melissa Barrera—who is now, we suppose, former Scream franchise star Melissa Barrera, after Spyglass announced this week that it was firing her from the franchise over accusations of “hate speech”—has now made her first public statement about the whole situation.
Or, rather, not really about the situation, since Barrera’s statement on her Instagram Story tonight focused solely on the same issues she’d previously been talking about that caused Spyglass to fire her, i.e., the current conflict between Israel and Hamas, and calls for peace and non-violence. (She did not her refusal to be silent, which could be seen as a reflection on Spyglass’ decision) According to screenshots (as reported by People), Barrera said that,
First and foremost I condemn Anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. I condemn hate and prejudice of any kind against any group of people. 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. Every person on the earth—regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation or socio-economic status—deserves equal human rights, dignity and, of course, freedom. 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.
In addition to starring in 2022's Scream and this year’s Scream VI, Barrera is also known for prominent roles in Vida and In The Heights. Her firing is at the center of a vortex of drama that’s now surrounded Scream VII; among other things, it led to the revelation that her co-star Jenna Ortega not only wasn’t going to be in the sequel, either, but reportedly hadn’t been planned to appear in it for months at this point. (It’s also led some people allegedly close to the production to shrug and say “Well, maybe we’ll bring Neve Campbell back now” in off-the-record comments that mostly sound, to our ears, like “Please stop yelling at us about this.”) Scream VII is slated for a 2025 release—and who are we to say that sounds like the most desperate wishful thinking imaginable, huh?