Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.Read more

Matthew Lillard said he was “ashamed” and “embarrassed” returning to the Scream franchise after Melissa Barrera was fired for denouncing Israel’s war on Gaza, saying he was “on the wrong side of history” for accepting the role.

Lillard, who played Stu Macher in Wes Craven’s Scream in 1996, was at a screening of the first film marking its 30th anniversary when he was asked about the difficulties public figures could face for speaking about political issues, according to Entertainment Weekly.

“For me, I have queer kids. If I am not standing up for queer kids, or kids in the trans community, then what the f*** am I doing? If I’m not standing up against ICE, then what the f*** am I doing?” he replied.

He then turned to Barrera’s removal from Scream 7, saying that speaking out could carry serious professional consequences.

“Melissa Barrera, who’s a beautiful actor, was fired for what she said after the whole Palestinian – what started happening in Israel,” Lillard said. “It’s really f***ing b******* and really hard and she’s on the right side of history.”

Matthew Lillard says he feels ‘ashamed’ and ‘embarrassed’ returning to the Scream franchise after Melissa Barrera’s firing for denouncing the Israeli war on Gaza (Getty Images)

Barrera, 35, starred as Samantha Carpenter in the horror franchise’s 2022 reboot Scream and sequel Scream 6.

She had been expected to reprise her role in Scream 7, but was dropped by the production company Spyglass in November 2023 after posting criticism of Israel’s war on Gaza.

In an Instagram Story, Barrera wrote that “Gaza is currently being treated like a concentration camp” and described the situation as “genocide and ethnic cleansing”.

Spyglass said it had “zero tolerance for antisemitism or the incitement of hate in any form”, including what it called “false references to genocide, ethnic cleansing, Holocaust distortion”, and material that “flagrantly crosses the line into hate speech”.

After Barrera’s exit, co-star Jenna Ortega, who played Sam’s sister Tara Carpenter, dropped out, along with director Christopher Landon, who left in December 2023.

Scream 7 was then rebuilt around Neve Campbell’s Sidney Prescott, the original franchise protagonist, with Scream creator Kevin Williamson taking over as director.

The film ultimately reunited Campbell with several returning cast members, including Courteney Cox and Lillard.

In spite of the controversies around it, Scream 7 became the highest-grossing film in the long-running franchise, and Lillard acknowledged that Barrera didn’t receive enough support.

“When they start coming after your job, sometimes things are worth it,” he said. “When that happened to Melissa, the whole world didn’t pipe up. But she was a year early on what the f**k’s going on. But the whole world should have popped up and said, ‘She’s right.’ And they didn’t. And that’s brutal.”

Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega in ‘Scream’ (Spyglass Media)

In a November 2024 interview with The Independent, Barrera said acting work had largely dried up after her firing.

“It was quiet for, like, 10 months,” she said. “I was still getting offers for small things here and there. I’m not going to lie and say there was nothing, but the message was, like, ‘Oh, she probably doesn’t have work, she’ll say yes to anything.’”

Lillard talked about being “called out” for returning to the franchise and said it felt “brutal”. “I feel bad about that, I feel shame about that. Because in that moment, I was so excited to go back, I didn’t really think about Melissa and that journey. I didn’t say no. I’m embarrassed, and that’s the truth,” he said. “I blew that. I’m on the wrong side of history for that. I still like being in the movie. It may not have been the best idea.”

In May, Barrera was asked if she considered the people who agreed to do the movie after she was fired to be “scabs” who “crossed the picket line” in protesting the war in Palestine.

“Oh, one hundred per cent. I think they all are. And they’ve to live with that,” she told Variety. “The only way they were able to make that movie after what happened was to nostalgia-bait as much as possible.”