Scream 7’s Rocky Road to Release: Fired Star, Premiere Protests and a $7 Million Comeback for Neve Campbell
scream 7 is tracking a North American opening of $45 million to $50 million even as the film arrives after a stormy production that included the firing of Melissa Barrera, public protests at the world premiere and a major creative overhaul.
Box office hopes amid a controversial production
The slasher sequel is projected to open with a series-best $45 million to $50 million in North America, a mark producers hope will reward a costly and contentious path back to theaters. The sixth film in the franchise previously earned $161 million worldwide, the largest global haul since the original two installments, and that performance helped quiet concerns about making another entry without Neve Campbell.
Firing, social posts and an Instagram reply
Melissa Barrera was fired in November 2023 after resharing social media posts about the Israel-Hamas conflict that production executives deemed to cross into antisemitism — posts that included an allegation of “genocide and ethnic cleansing” and a magazine article suggesting Holocaust distortion. More than two years after her ouster, Barrera appeared to acknowledge protesters outside the film’s world premiere at Paramount Studios by posting “I see you” with a heart emoji on her Instagram Story.
Scream 7 director Kevin Williamson responds to protesters
At the premiere, Kevin Williamson — who took over directing duties and co-wrote the screenplay with Guy Busick — told attendees on the red carpet that he supports the right to protest. “We live in America. We have the right to protest. They have the right to be heard, and they have a right to speak to what your truth is, and I support that, ” he said as protesters with signs reading “Free Palestine” gathered outside.
Cast exits, threats and a half-million-dollar rewrite
After Barrera’s removal, Jenna Ortega announced she would not return, initially citing scheduling conflicts with her Netflix series Wednesday; she later said the sequel “was all kind of falling apart” without Barrera to play the new “final girl” Sam Carpenter. Director Christopher Landon also exited the project, saying he had received “highly aggressive and really scary” death threats that targeted his children. Producers then commissioned a substantial retooling of the script — a rewrite pegged at roughly $500, 000 — and brought franchise veteran Kevin Williamson back to steer the project.
Neve Campbell’s return and paydays for franchise regulars
Neve Campbell was brought back to reprise Sidney Prescott in March 2024 after sitting out the previous entry over a pay dispute; she secured a deal worth nearly $7 million. Courteney Cox, who has appeared in every Scream film since 1996, received $2 million for this installment. Industry analyst Shawn Robbins compared Campbell’s role in the franchise to Jamie Lee Curtis’s role in the Halloween films, calling her “a big draw, especially for older generations who grew up with the original films. ”
What’s in the film and when audiences can see it
The film, directed by Kevin Williamson and written by Williamson and Guy Busick, is rated R and runs 1 hour 54 minutes. The credited cast includes Neve Campbell, Isabel May, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Mason Gooding, Anna Camp, David Arquette, Roger L. Jackson, Michelle Randolph, Jimmy Tatro, Mckenna Grace, Asa Germann, Celeste O’Connor, Sam Rechner, Mark Consuelos, Tim Simons, Matthew Lillard, Joel McHale and Courteney Cox. In the story, Sidney Prescott has built a new life married to local cop Mark, played by Joel McHale, and has a teenage daughter, Tatum, played by Isabel May; Tatum’s boyfriend, played by Sam Rechner, figures into the early list of suspects when Ghostface returns.
Fans had been vocal online after the film’s first trailer in October, with calls for a boycott spiking and demonstrators from groups including Entertainment Labor for Palestine, CodePink LA and Jewish Voice for Peace-Los Angeles staging the premiere protest to call attention “to the industry’s widespread silencing of pro-Palestinian voices and its whitewashing of Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza. ” Spyglass explained its decision to fire Barrera by saying the company has “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. ”
The film is scheduled to open in theaters on Friday, February 27; the studio and producers will be watching weekend grosses and audience reaction after a production that included high-profile departures, a costly rewrite and the return of a franchise stalwart in Neve Campbell.
