Melissa Barrera has not completely closed the door on returning to Scream. She has, however, made one condition very clear: it would have to happen without Spyglass Media Group.
Asked during a recent JustWatch interview whether she would ever return to the horror franchise, Barrera said, “Not with the company that currently holds the rights.” She added that her feelings toward the movies themselves remain positive: “I love the franchise. I had an amazing time making those movies.”
The distinction matters. Barrera played Sam Carpenter in 2022’s Scream and 2023’s Scream VI and was originally expected to continue as one of the franchise’s central characters.
Her issue now is not Ghostface or Sam. It is the company behind the movies.
Barrera says even an apology would not change her mind
Barrera was dropped from the planned seventh film in November 2023 after social-media posts she shared about Israel and Gaza. At the time, Spyglass said it had “zero tolerance for antisemitism” and maintained that some of Barrera’s posts crossed its line into hate speech. Barrera has disputed that characterization.
Nearly three years later, she says the fallout still affects how she views the company.
Barrera told JustWatch that Spyglass leadership had characterized her in a way she rejects and had never apologized. She went further, saying that even if an apology came now, she would not return while the franchise remained under the same leadership.
Her position therefore is not “never Scream again.”
It is “not this version of the business relationship.”
One scenario could bring Sam Carpenter back
Barrera did leave one path open.
She said that if the Scream rights were ever to move away from Spyglass and into the hands of people she believed better honored Wes Craven’s legacy, she could imagine returning.
That is purely hypothetical at this stage.
Variety identifies Spyglass as both a co-producer and current rights holder on the franchise, and there has been no announced sale or transfer that would create the situation Barrera described.
The current version of Scream has also moved forward without Sam Carpenter.
Scream 7 opened on February 27, 2026, with Neve Campbell returning as Sidney Prescott and Kevin Williamson directing. Paramount says the movie subsequently passed $200 million worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing installment in the franchise.
So Barrera’s comments should not be read as evidence that a comeback is being discussed behind the scenes.
They simply clarify that she still has affection for Scream and the character she helped introduce, while drawing a firm line around who she is willing to work with.
Sam Carpenter’s story remains unfinished
That makes the comment interesting from a storytelling perspective too.
Scream VI left Sam alive alongside Tara Carpenter and the surviving members of the newer generation. Sam had spent two movies struggling with her connection to Billy Loomis and her own capacity for violence, leaving plenty of room for the character to evolve in another chapter.
The original plan for Scream 7 changed substantially after Barrera’s departure. Jenna Ortega also exited the project, citing scheduling issues, and the movie was eventually rebuilt around Campbell’s Sidney.
That means Sam’s absence was never presented on screen as a definitive ending.
Whether audiences ever see her again now depends on circumstances far beyond Ghostface’s next killing spree.
For Barrera, the character is apparently still worth revisiting. The current rights holder is not.
