Original Scream actor Neve Campbell has returned to the franchise for Scream 7 but fans aren’t as excited about her return as you’d think.
The cast change comes after Melissa Barrera was fired for sharing pro-Palestine posts on social media and Jenna Ortega left the project due to “scheduling conflicts”.
Campbell took to Instagram to announce the news.
“Sidney Prescott is coming back,” she wrote, noting her excitement over the project.
“It’s always been such a blast and an honour 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. I’m very happy and proud to say I’ve been asked, in the most respectful way, to bring Sidney back to the screen and I couldn’t be more thrilled!!!”
But Campbell’s return to the franchise is a surprise to fans after she announced in 2022 that she would not be appearing in Scream 6 over insufficient pay and claimed that the money offered to her did not match her worth.
“Sadly I won’t be making the next Scream film,” she said in a statement at the time.
“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. 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.”
Although Campbell has generally been considered the golden gal of the Scream franchise, fans haven’t been as jazzed to see her return — especially in the wake of Barrera’s firing — and they didn’t hold back in the comments.
“This is actually disappointing considering the studio’s actions towards Melissa,” one wrote on Instagram.
“The movie is already boycotted, don’t do that to yourself, girl. We all, fans, know that you are coming back only for the money,” said another.
“As a lifelong fan, this is actually really heartbreaking,” commented a fan. “Was really hoping you’d show solidarity with Melissa.”
“Signing onto a film held by people who fired the previous actress of colour as a lead due to her speaking out against genocide is extremely disappointing. After they lowballed you last time. Terrible lmao,” another fan exclaimed.
At this stage, Campbell hasn’t commented on the negative vibe in her comment section but I think it’s safe to say that Scream 7 is a little bit cursed.
