It looks like Paramount’s Scream franchise got too woke for it’s own good. In an interesting turn of events, the studio is now doing the one thing they refused to do two years ago: pay Neve Campbell to return.
In 2022, Campbell told Variety that she would not be reprising her role as Sidney Prescott in last year’s Scream 6 because the studio lowballed her in compensation, declaring, “As a woman I have had to work extremely hard in my career to establish my value, especially when it comes to ‘Scream.’”
“I felt the offer that was presented to me did not equate to the value I have brought to the franchise. It’s been a very difficult decision to move on,” the actress added. “To all my ‘Scream’ fans, I love you. You’ve always been so incredibly supportive to me. I’m forever grateful to you and to what this franchise has given me over the past 25 years.”
On Tuesday, Campbell took to Instagram to officially announce her return in the upcoming Scream 7, after the firing of star Melissa Barrera and the exit of Jenna Ortega from the franchise in November of last year.
“Hi All. I’m so excited to announce this news!!! Sidney Prescott is coming back!!!! It’s always been such a blast and an honor to get to play Sidney in the Scream movies. My appreciation for these films and for what they have meant to me, has never waned,” Campbell declared.
She continued, “I’ve dreamt for many years of how amazing it would be to make one of these movies with Kevin Williamson at the helm. And now it’s happening, Kevin Williamson is going to direct Scream 7!”
“This was his baby and it’s his brilliant mind that dreamt up this world. Kevin is not just an inspiration as an artist but has been a dear friend for many years. To the amazing Scream fans, I hope you are as excited as I am,” Campbell concluded.
Paramount thought they no longer needed Campbell because they had two young and diverse counterparts to take her place in Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega, but those plans quickly fell apart.
On October 7, roughly 2,900 Palestinian militants infiltrated Israel in a brutal assault on the nation that led to the deaths of 1,200 Israelis and foreigners including 859 civilians. As a result of the bloodiest day in Israel’s history, the country has unleashed a ruthless assault on the Hamas terrorists in Gaza over several months which has led to thousands of deaths.
The following month, reports indicated that Barrera had been fired from the upcoming Scream film after sharing a social media post in which the actress publicly sided with Palestine and condemned the actions of Israel, accusing the latter of committing genocide.
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“Gaza is currently being treated like a concentration camp,” the actress wrote on Instagram stories. “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 happen. THIS IS GENOCIDE & ETHNIC CLEANSING.”
Addressing the firing of Barrera, a spokesperson for Spyglass told Variety, “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.”
Less than 24 hours later, Melissa’s co-star Jenna Ortega, also left the franchise due to scheduling conflicts with the shooting of Wednesday. However, Ortega has also publicly supported Palestine in their conflict with Israel and many deemed it a sign of solidary with Barrera who was fired for speaking out against Israel.
Given the unfolding of events, it is safe to say that Campbell’s return is a direct result of the Barrera and Ortega leaving the upcoming Scream project.
Paramount has spent the last couple of years making the Scream franchise woke by taking the established franchise characters and recasting them to meet modern Hollywood diversity and inclusion requirements.
The franchise also suffers from the predictability of making the killers of Scream (2022) and Scream VI the only remaining white characters in the films, while giving minorities plot armor.
But now that Barrera and Ortega have left the franchise due to being at conflict with their woke opinions, Paramount had no choice than to go back to nostalgia by making a deal with Campbell, who they just showed the door two short years earlier.
NEXT: Opinion: Paramount Low Balling Neve Campbell For Scream 6 Is Another Causality Of Woke Reboots