Jenna Ortega breaks silence on Melissa Barrera's firing from Scream
Jenna Ortega has broken her silence on Melissa Barrera's firing from Scream 7.
Last year, the Sam Carpenter actor was dropped from the seventh movie in the franchise, reportedly over comments she made on the Israel-Palestine conflict.
While Ortega didn't name Barrera specifically, the actor spoke in a new interview with Vanity Fair about Hollywood's attitude to the conflict while addressing her co-star's firing.
Related: Melissa Barrera's new movie confirms UK release
"The business that we work in is so touchy-feely," she said. "Everybody wants to be politically correct, but I feel like, in doing that, we lose a lot of our humanity and integrity, because it lacks honesty.
"I wish that we had a better sense of conversation. Imagine if everyone could say what they felt and not be judged for it and, if anything, it sparked some sort of debate, not an argument."
She added: "Am I describing world peace?"
Ortega herself departed from the Scream franchise following Barrera's exit, reportedly over scheduling conflicts, as did director Christopher Landon.
Related: Melissa Barrera responds to Scream reunion on new movie Abigail
In April, Barrera thanked fans in the wake of her being dropped, calling their support "very beautiful" and "very unexpected".
"Obviously, I just didn't know what the reaction was going to be," she told Entertainment Weekly. "Seeing the love and the support from the fans, the people that understand that it's bigger than a movie — what's happening is not just about a movie, it's something deeper — I'm very grateful."
The star added: "To see the support from the [Scream] fans, I just felt very validated. It was beautiful in that moment where I felt so lonely and scared and just in a dark place; to feel them lifting me was beautiful."
The Scream movies are streaming on Paramount+.
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