Neve Campbell reveals why she agreed to participate in ‘Scream 7’ after a ‘disrespectful’ proposal for a previous film | Films

Neve Campbell is officially back in the horror franchise ‘Scream’ and she didn’t hide her excitement during an interview with People magazine. The actress, who played Sidney Prescott in the first five films, explained the reason that led her to accept the new venture.

Even before all the controversy involving ‘Scream 7’, Campbell had already fallen out with the studio responsible for the franchise. This is because, when contacted to participate in ‘Scream VI’, the actress felt offended by the salary proposal and rejected the offer.

One film and a stampede of team members later, the producers decided to think more carefully before defining the figures in a new contract for the star.

“I’m so grateful the studio listened to me when I spoke about the pay discrepancy and when I mentioned that the negotiations for ‘Scream VI’ were disrespectful,” she said.

“When they approached me for ‘Scream 7,’ I thought, ‘I don’t know what being respectful means to them. Maybe we have different ideas,'” the actress continued, citing her concerns that the new offer might be as low as the previous. “But they already started with a solid foundation, so it was great.”

The problems with ‘Scream 7’ began after the dismissal of Melissa Barrera, who joined the cast in the fifth film. She starred in the next project and was already confirmed for the seventh feature, but was dismissed after publicly taking a stand in favor of Palestine in the conflict against Israel.

In late 2023, she wrote on social media: “Gaza is currently being treated like a concentration camp… This is genocide and ethnic cleansing.” Mentioning her own Mexican origins, the actress added: “I also came from a colonized country. Palestine will be free.”

Spyglass, the producer responsible for the franchise, issued a statement condemning Barrera’s statements. “Spyglass’ position is unequivocally clear: we have zero tolerance for anti-Semitism or hate speech in any form, including false references to genocide, ethnic cleansing, distortion of the Holocaust, or anything that blatantly crosses the line into hate speech,” the company stated in a note.

Shortly after Melissa’s dismissal, Jenna Ortega, who played Tara Carpenter, left the cast citing scheduling conflicts. Then, Christopher Landon, who would be the film’s director, also abandoned the project and said: “What was a dream job turned into a nightmare.”

With that, Kevin Williamson, screenwriter of ‘Scream’, ‘Scream 2’ and ‘Scream 4’, took over as director — a decision praised by Campbell. “I’m so excited that Kevin Williamson is going to direct. He’s wanted it for years and he deserves it. This is his baby. He’s going to do a phenomenal job,” he said.

‘Scream 7’ has not yet had a release date revealed.

Check out the trailer for ‘Scream VI’, the franchise’s most recent project, below.