Jenna Ortega will no longer star in Scream VII, the latest in a dramatic turn of events for the next installment in the horror franchise.

Sources tell The Hollywood Reporter she informed Scream studio Spyglass months ago she did not intend to return.

Since news broke that Melissa Barrera will no longer be starring in Scream VII, the horror community has been in shock. Barrera has not yet made an official commented.

However, before her departure was announced, she reshared a quote from another account on her Instagram story which read:

“At the end of the day, I’d rather be excluded for who I include, than be included for who I exclude.”

That post has been interpreted by some of her followers as a reference to her being sacked from the film.

The actor was dropped from the project after a series of social media posts in the wake of the Israel-Hamas War.

Ortega’s exit from the next Scream installment was discussed before the actors strike. A script for Scream Vii is not ready yet, and the Primetime Emmy nominee has to head to Ireland in April to shoot the second season of Netflix’s Wednesday which will go into the summer. Additionally, Beetlejuice post SAG-AFTRA strike had a few extra days of shooting in order to meet its Labor Day 2024 theatrical release.

Barrera first appeared in SCREAM, the 2022 feature that earned $137.7 million globally and combined generations of cast-members from the franchise. Barrera’s Sam Carpenter was the lead of that film, and the older sister of Jenna Ortega’s Tera. Barrera also starred in Scream VI, which was released in March and topped $168.9 million at the global box office.

Spyglass & Christopher Landon releases statements regarding Melissa Barrera removal from Scream VII

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