Melissa Barrera's Israel-Hamas comments cost her 'Scream' role
Actor Melissa Barrera has been active on social media over her views on the ongoing Israel-Hamas War. She re-shared pro-Palestine posts on her Instagram including one that allegedly accused Israel of "genocide and ethnic cleansing." Her posts have cost her the role in Scream 7, as makers dropped her from the project, saying they "have zero tolerance for antisemitism or the incitement of hate."
Why does this story matter?
Apart from Barrera, actor Susan Saradon was also dropped by her agency, UTA, reportedly. "There are a lot of people that are afraid, that are afraid of being Jewish at this time, and are getting a taste of what it feels like to be a Muslim in this country, so often subjected to violence," she said at a pro-Palestine rally in the US.
Which post landed Barrera in trouble?
In one of the posts, Barrera extended her support to Palestine, which was considered "antisemitic" by Spyglass Media Group, the production house backing the seventh installment of the horror film franchise. Other than the "genocide and ethnic cleansing" allegation post, Barrera, who plays Sam Carpenter in Scream movies, shared another one that spoke about distorting "the Holocaust to boost the Israeli arms industry."
Spyglass clarified its stand on Barrera's posts
Spyglass cleared its stand and announced that it has decided to drop Barrera from the cast of the hit franchise. "Spyglass's stance is unequivocally clear: 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," a spokesperson told Variety.
Barrera hasn't officially commented on being dropped
According to Variety, the actor is yet to respond to the production house's decision to drop her. Variety reached out to her manager but didn't receive any official comments. As for Scream 7's director Christopher Landon, he reacted to her exit via a now-deleted tweet that read: "Everything sucks. Stop yelling. This was not my decision to make."
