'Scream' actress Melissa Barrera fired after accusations of antisemitism

The lead actress in the Scream movie franchise has been fired from her role over social media posts about the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.

Production company Sypglass Entertainment revealed that Melissa Barrera, who starred as Sam Carpenter in Scream and Scream VI, will no longer be cast in Scream VII.

As Variety reports, Barrera's firing was originally believed to have been due to her support for Palestinians, however Spyglass quickly clarified that her posts were interpreted as antisemitic.
 

"Spyglass’ stance is unequivocally clear," a spokesperson told the outlet. "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."

The posts in question were shared via Barrera's Instagram story.
 

"I have been actively looking for videos and information about the Palestinian side for the last 2 weeks or so, following accounts etc," she wrote. "Why? Because Western media only shows the other side. Why they do that, I will let you deduce for yourself."

"Usually the algorithm on social media gets the gist," she added. "Well...My discover page on IG will ONLY show me videos showing and talking about the Israeli side. Censorship is very real."

She suggested that "the world has been trying to make [Palestinians] invisible for decades."

In another post, the Mexican actress expressed solidarity with Palestinians, who she claimed were living in a "colonized country."

"Palestine WILL be free," she added.

As TMZ reports, Barrera's other posts compared the situation in Gaza to that of a concentration camp, and referred to Israel's actions as an attempt at "genocide" and "ethnic cleansing."

In a now-deleted post on X, Scream VII director Christopher Landon pushed back against those claiming he had a say in Barrera's firing, writing, "Everything sucks. Stop yelling. This was not my decision to make."