Melissa Barrera fired from Scream 7 movie over Israel-Hamas war posts
Mexican actress Melissa Barrera has been fired from the movie franchise Scream, with her axing following on from posts she made relating to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war and Gaza conflict.
According to a new report, Spyglass Media Group has "dropped" Melissa from the cast of Scream VII, with them said to be "pushing back on a narrative that has quickly coalesced around the decision that Barrera was fired for showing support for the Palestinian cause".
Melissa, 33, was cast as Sam Carpenter in August 2020 for the fifth Scream film, with the flick hitting screens in January 2022. She is also famous for having starred in the likes of In The Heights and Carmen. She was supposed to be at the helm of the leading role for the next Scream flick.
READ NEXT: Brad Pitt finding dragged-up family feud 'unfortunate' as he's been silent on children
Variety has today reported that a spokesperson has said that the star's social media posts were interpreted as antisemitic. Speaking to the outlet, the spokesperson for the company said: "Spyglass’ stance is unequivocally clear: We have zero tolerance for antisemitism or the incitement of hate in any form."
Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey is surprise hit as Pooh & Piglet turn to murderThe statement then went on to add that this includes "false references to genocide, ethnic cleansing, Holocaust distortion or anything that flagrantly crosses the line into hate speech".
This comes after the actress posted about the Israel-Hamas conflict on social media. One post, that the actress re-shared from another account, accused Israel of “genocide and ethnic cleansing”.
One of the posts read: "Gaza is currently being treated like a concentration camp," as cited by the Hollywood Reporter. The post continued: "Cornering everyone together, with nowhere to go, no electricity no water … People have learned nothing from our histories. And just like our histories, people are still silently watching it all happen. THIS IS GENOCIDE & ETHNIC CLEANSING.”
Melissa is also reported to have shared another post, but this time from Jewish Currents magazine, which touched on "the Holocaust to boost the Israeli arms industry".
According to the outlet, the actress "is no longer working with a publicist" following her axe from the movie franchise.