To say the production of Scream 7 was plagued by issues would be an understatement. Shortly after the controversial firing of Melissa Barrera, her on-screen sister Jenna Ortega and original director Christopher Landon also exited the project. Nevertheless, Scream 7 has gone on to become the highest-grossing entry in the franchise, despite registering the lowest critical scores in the series.
Barrera, however, remains unconvinced by the movie’s box office numbers, as in a recent interview with Variety, the actor stated (via Variety):
I know. And I think they lied about the numbers. I don’t think it made that much money. But at the stage door, I sign “Scream” things every night. People who love me from those movies are coming to see the show, and they can’t ever take that away from me.
While there’s no way to confirm if the movie’s box office figures were altered, considering how front-loaded its numbers were, it’s safe to say this one was riding off the goodwill of the past two installments.
Melissa Barrera Calls Scream 7 Nostalgia Bait Amid Box Office Doubts
Coming back to the film’s production issues, Christopher Landon has said there was no movie without Barrera, as the original draft centered entirely around her. Her exit, along with the loss of other key players, prompted Spyglass to turn to legacy names like Neve Campbell and writer Kevin Williamson.
Barrera, for her part, isn’t holding back, as she called out those involved and criticized the movie’s reliance on nostalgia bait, adding:
The only way they were able to make that movie after what happened was to nostalgia-bait as much as possible.
But as it turned out, this did work in the movie’s favor, making a splash at the box office even though it was positioned as one of the weaker entries in the franchise.
Melissa Barrera Received Little Industry Support Post-Scream Exit
A still from Scream 6 | Credit: Paramount Pictures
Beyond expressing her distaste for the new installment, Melissa Barrera also opened up about her struggles following the firing, revealing that opportunities and offers quickly dried up.
Surprisingly, while many assumed her former collaborators, including Ortega and Landon, stood in solidarity with her, Barrera noted that support was confined to a few private texts. According to her, the only person who reached out in a more meaningful way nearly ten months later was Boots Riley, who not only offered support but rekindle her career momentum.
I had faith. I was like, “Someone is going to reach out to me and help me. It’s just a matter of time.” You know who was the only person? Boots Riley. I love him. He reached out to me ten months later — I had ten torturous months of uncertainty, and no work, and suffering, and not even knowing if my team was on my side, it was terrible
As for the Scream franchise, the new movie’s failure to reach even a 2x multiplier on the domestic front, despite a record-breaking opening, signals potential trouble for the next entry, as another subpar entry might not cut it next time around.
Movie NameScream 7DirectorKevin WilliamsonIMDb (as of May 7)5.5Rotten Tomatoes (as of May 7)31% | 75%Box Office Worldwide (as of May 7)$207.5 millionProduction HouseSpyglass Media GroupProject X EntertainmentOuterbanks EntertainmentDistributed ByParamount Pictures
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Scream 7 is available to rent on Apple TV.
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