Jenna Ortega has clarified the reasons behind her exit from Scream 7, revealing that her decision was not influenced by scheduling or pay, as was initially reported. In a recent interview with The Cut, Ortega explained that her departure was tied to the disruption following the firing of her co-star, Melissa Barrera.
Ortega, who played Tara Carpenter in Scream (2022) and Scream VI (2023), emphasized that the situation began to fall apart after Barrera was dismissed from the film due to her pro-Palestine social media posts. Barrera’s posts, which criticized Israel, led to her removal from Scream 7, and Ortega chose to follow suit soon after.
“It had nothing to do with pay or scheduling,” Ortega said. “The Melissa stuff was happening, and it was all kind of falling apart. If Scream VII wasn’t going to be with that team of directors and those people I fell in love with, then it didn’t seem like the right move for me in my career at the time.”
The departure of Ortega and Barrera came after the exit of directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, who had directed the past two Scream films. The film’s direction is now in the hands of original screenwriter Kevin Williamson, who has returned to direct Scream 7, which will feature the return of Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott. Other returning cast members include Courteney Cox, Mason Gooding, and Jasmin Savoy Brown.
While Ortega won’t appear in the upcoming film, her career is moving forward with multiple projects, including Wednesday Season 2 and the recent release of Death of a Unicorn. She has also joined the cast of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.
“I’ve happened to join a lot of franchises, which is so great to be a part of legacy,” Ortega shared. “But for me, I’m really trying to prioritize new directors and original stories. I know on the outside, maybe people are looking at my choices like, ‘Man, what the hell is this girl doing?’ I never thought I would do a movie with unicorns. But an original script is exciting. If I can help get it made, I love to do that.”
