After the news of the Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega exit from the Scream franchise this week we discuss why this may just be what the Scream franchise needed.
In what is absolutely going to be an article that divides fans I wanted to approach this article from the point of a neutral fan who appreciated both the old Screams for what they were and appreciated the new Screams for pushing new avenues and boundaries.
News this week came to light that actress Melissa Barrera was sacked from the upcoming Scream movie after reportedly sharing social media posts regarding the war against Hamas in Gaza.
The Mexican star voiced her opinion and was controversially axed by production company Spyglass, according to Variety magazine.
The posts were viewed as antisemitic and Spyglass claimed their stance was unequivocally clear.
Melissa claimed false references to genocide and ethnic cleansing along with making references to the Holocaust.
Now whether you agree with what Melissa said or not the fact is that a person in her position with agents, client and PR around her 24-7 should really keep comments like that out of the public limelight.
The flip side of that is that someone should be able to voice their opinions in any way shape or form and in any manner that they please but sadly the way of the world is much different today.
You can simply be fired from a job just by misgendering someone nowadays, the world is a much more sensitive place and whilst freedom of speech is still rife it’s what you say that now has more dire consequences than it would have done many moons ago.
Melissa has starred in the two most recent films and to add insult to injury it was reported that co-star Jenna Ortega has hit scheduling conflicts with Wednesday and therefore would not be available to shoot Scream 7.
Very convenient timing if you ask me as the news came out at the same time, whether this is solidarity or not is mere speculation so for now we have to take this at face value but here’s where my spanner is thrown into the works.
Are they really going to be missed?
I can almost hear the gasps from part of the fandom by merely posing that very question but hear me out a second.
Audiences were up in arms over Scream franchise star Neve Campbell not coming back for Scream 6 after she felt undervalued at the offer given to her to reprise her role as Sidney Prescott.
Fans across the globe were campaigning for her return, saying they would boycott the franchise and protesting that the franchise would be doomed without her.
Scream 5 grossed $138.9 million with Neve, Scream 6 grossed $169 million without her.
It’s safe to say, on the grand scheme of things from a business angle. Most fans really didn’t give a shit.
Boycotting never really works the way you think it will as there will always be a bigger quieter group that will have the majority win.
Brexit anyone?
So, we have this same situation again with Melissa as fans are saying they will boycott the franchise and will refuse to go and see the movie.
Good luck with that.
When Melissa and Jenna were attached to the franchise people were begging for Neve back as Melissa’s wooden acting and Jenna simply being added to the franchise because of her Wednesday success was rubbing horror fans up the wrong way.
Both felt awkward in their roles and whilst Scream 6 did wonderfully at the box office it was actually one of the weakest instalments story-wise in the franchise so far with many mixed reviews but one thing was for certain, not everyone was sold on Melissa’s or Jenna’s character and even more people were uncertain of the more woke direction in which the franchise was being steered.
Hayden Panettiere was also a huge fan favourite in previous instalments yet once again her performance in this was borderline criminal, dialled in and half-arsed as described by one blunt reviewer.
With the exit of Jenna and Melissa now saving a pretty fortune in those Spyglass pockets, could it be time to start grovelling and get Neve Campbell back involved with the project? It would certainly make sense.
Whilst the movie without her did make more money it suffered in many other departments to the point where the Scream identity is slowly but surely being lost.
The second Ghostface picked up a shotgun, I mentally checked out… stop going against the grain and bring Scream back to its original best.
It would be wonderful to have Neve back but a clean break from the awkwardness that was Scream 6 would be much appreciated.
Whether Neve would come back to the franchise after being undervalued in her previous contract negotiations remains to be seen but Melissa and Jenna leaving the franchise may not be the worst thing, in fact, it feels like a fresh start and whilst making money won’t be an issue for the franchise, keeping franchise integrity when it comes to fan-service is vital.
I’m going to be keeping a very close eye on this one in the months to come!
What do you make of the Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega Scream exit?
