Jenna Ortega is addressing why she actually exited the “Scream” franchise two years in the past.
The “Wednesday” actress, 22, opened up about her choice to depart the position of scream queen Tara Carpenter in an interview with The Lower on Monday.
Though it was initially reported that Ortega left the franchise attributable to “pay and scheduling issues,” she has now clarified that it was usually because her onscreen sister, Melissa Barrera, was fired and wouldn’t be returning.
Ortega added that she exited the franchise as a result of the administrators of 2022’s “Scream” and 2023’s “Scream VI,” Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, weren’t coming again for “Scream VII.”
“The Melissa stuff was happening, and it was all kind of falling apart,” Ortega mentioned. “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.”
Ortega, who most just lately starred in “Death of a Unicorn,” added that she is extra eager about pursuing initiatives that aren’t related to an already well-established IP.
“I’ve happened to join a lot of franchises, which is so great to be a part of legacy,” the “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” star mentioned. “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,” she continued. “But an original script is exciting. If I can help get it made, I love to do that.”
“Scream VII” started to “fall apart” in 2023 when administrators Gillett and Bettinelli-Olpin left the franchise to direct Barrera in a Common movie titled “Abigail.”
The “Scream VI” sequel collapsed additional later that yr when Barrera, 34, was fired for expressing assist for Palestine amid the Israeli-Hamas struggle in Gaza.
“Gaza is currently being treated like a concentration camp,” she wrote in a single social media put up. “Cornering everyone together, with no where to go, no electricity no water. People have learnt nothing from our histories. And just like our histories, people are still silently watching it all happen. THIS IS GENOCIDE & ETHNIC CLEANSING.”
Spyglass Media fired Barrera shortly after.
“Spyglass’ 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,” an organization spokesperson advised Selection in Nov. 2023.
Ortega dropped out of the film sooner or later after Spyglass Media booted Barrera.
Barrera later opened up about being axed from “Scream VII” and doubled down on her place of condemning “hate and prejudice of any kind.”
“I will continue to advocate for peace and safety, for human rights and freedom,” she mentioned on Instagram. “Silence is not an option for me.”
Barrera additionally revealed that Ortega had reached out to point out her assist after the firing.
“We chatted for a while, and I love her so much. She’s been very supportive of me, and we’re sisters for life,” Barrera mentioned of her former “Scream” sister. “We’ll plan little reunions to play board games because that’s what we used to do when we were shooting.”
Since Barrera’s firing and Ortega’s exit from “Scream VII,” the movie has gone via a whole overhaul.
Christopher Landon, who was picked to take over as director after Gillett and Bettinelli-Olpin left, dropped out in Dec. 2023, saying the venture was “a dream job that turned into a nightmare.”
Franchise mainstays Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette are actually set to return to their roles as Sidney Prescott, Gale Weathers, and Deputy Dewey Riley, respectively.
Two previous Ghostface killers, Matthew Lillard and Scott Foley, are scheduled to return to the franchise for “Scream VII” when it hits theaters subsequent yr.
