Melissa Barrera felt like her life "was over" after she was sacked from the 'Scream' movie franchise.
The 34-year-old actress was let go from her leading role as Sam Carpenter in the iconic slasher series after playing the part in 2022's 'Scream V' and 2023's 'Scream VI', because her posts supporting Palestine were deemed antisemitic by production firm Spyglass Media Group.
After being dropped from the seventh instalment, Melissa claimed work offers dried up for around "10 months" and she was only offered a handful of "small" parts, which she refuses to do because she must be "passionate" about her work – otherwise she will be "miserable".
She told The Independent: “It was the darkest and hardest year of my life, and I had to reevaluate everything.
“There were times where I felt like my life was over.”
She continued: “It was quiet for, like, 10 months. 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’.
“I would get [roles] that I wasn’t excited about, and I’ve never been a person that just wants to work for work’s sake. I give so much of myself to acting that if a part of me feels like it’s not worth it, I’m gonna be miserable.
“Inside I’m constantly freaking out."
The scream queen - who has also led horror-comedies 'Abigail' and 'Your Monster' - contemplated quitting acting for good but, fortunately, her "loyal fans" have continued to follow her career.
She added: "I rethink my career at least twice a year. Like, should I even be doing this? Am I even good? Am I ever gonna work again? Acting is my passion – I didn’t want it to just end."
Melissa insists she is still thankful for the experience she gained working with the 'Scream' team.
She concluded: “They gave me a lot in my career, I made really good friends. I have such loyal fans from those movies that are now watching the rest of the stuff that I do.”
The 'In The Heights' actress has been advocating for a ceasefire in Gaza and her firing came shortly after she re-shared a post accusing Israel of "genocide and ethnic cleansing".
The producers dropped her from the movie because of their "zero tolerance" policy for "hate speech".
They said in a statement: "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."
Since she departed, original lead actress Neve Campbell, 51, was confirmed to be reprising her role as Sidney Prescott in 'Scream 7' - which is slated for released on February 27, 2026 - after previously quitting due to a "pay discrepancies"
The movie also has a new director after Christopher Landon quit after Melissa, Jenna Ortega and Neve departed the flick.
The series' creator Kevin Williamson will now take to the helm.
