Jenna Ortega will not be returning for Scream 7. Here's why

Jenna Ortega has exited “Scream 7” over clash with her “Wednesday” Season 2 shooting schedule.

The development comes a day after her co-star Melissa was fired from the film due to her social media posts on Israel-Palestine conflict.

Ortega's departure was reportedly in the works for months before the SAG-AFTRA strike and unrelated to the firing of Barrera. The production dates for Season 2 are yet to be confirmed. Additionally, Ortega has remaining filming obligations for Tim Burton's "Beetlejuice 2," which was interrupted by the SAG-AFTRA strike and has a few more days of shooting left.


Ortega and Barrera co-starred as sisters Tara and Sam Carpenter in the 2022 revival of "Scream" and its sequel "Scream VI." They played a significant role in revitalizing the horror franchise, leading to the announcement of "Scream 7" earlier this year under the direction of Christopher Landon.

Barrera's comments on Instagram stories, in which she accused Israel of genocide and ethnic cleansing and compared Gaza to a concentration camp, were interpreted as antisemitic.

The production firm in charge of the well-known horror franchise, Spyglass Media Group, first declined to comment on Barrera's dismissal. But a statement issued later said that Barrera’s social media statements had been interpreted as antisemitic.

The production firm condemned references to genocide, ethnic cleansing, and alleged Holocaust distortion, declaring that they would tolerate no antisemitic or hateful comments at all.

Filmmaker Christopher Landon, who was supposed to helm "Scream VII" following the exits of Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, conveyed his dissatisfaction in a since-deleted statement.

Landon stated, "Stop yelling. This was not my decision to make," underscoring that he had no influence over the decision to dismiss Barrera.

The 2022 revival of “Scream” brought back original stars Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox and David Arquette and introduced franchise newcomers Mason Gooding Jr. and Jasmine Savoy Brown. For “Scream 7,” Campbell declined to return due to a pay dispute, but directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillet expressed hope that she would come back to the series in the future. The movie ended on a happy note for Ortega and Barrera’s characters, who beat the Ghostface killer once again and repaired their relationship.