Jenna Ortega Departing ‘Scream VII’ for Scheduling Reasons
According to reports, the decision was discussed before the actors’ strike, but the timing is suspicious given other ‘Scream’ developments.
Jenna Ortega attends the world premiere of Netflix's 'Wednesday' on November 16, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Presley Ann/Getty Images for Netflix.
Preview:
- Jenna Ortega is no longer appearing in ‘Scream VII’.
- She reportedly has a schedule clash with filming ‘Wednesday’ Season 2.
- The news comes just as co-star Melissa Barrera is dropped from the film over controversial social media posts.
The ‘Scream’ franchise has been hit with a one-two punch of its main stars departing.
Today brings word that Jenna Ortega, who has played Tara Carpenter for the most recent two entries (directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett), will not return for the seventh installment.
Why is Jenna Ortega not returning for the seventh ‘Scream’ movie?
Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams in 'Wednesday.' Photo: Courtesy of Netflix © 2022.
Officially, the story, according to Deadline is one of scheduling issues brought about because of the actors’ strike –– Ortega has a few days’ work left to complete ‘Beetlejuice 2’ and will spend a chunk of next year filming the second season of hit Netflix series ‘Wednesday’ in Ireland.
With the ‘Scream’ team (including incoming director Christopher Landon, who was hired to make the new movie back in August) looking to get the movie going ahead now the strikes are over, it appears she simply won’t have time to make both projects.
We’re still not certain why Spyglass (and studio Paramount) couldn’t simply hit pause until Ortega had space in her schedule, but of course the franchise needs to rumble on.
Yet the timing is also intriguing given the other big ‘Scream’ wrinkle…
What happened with Melissa Barrera and ‘Scream’?
(L to R) Melissa Barrera (Sam Carpenter) and Jenna Ortega (Tara Carpenter) stars in Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Media Group's 'Scream VI.'
Why are we a little suspicious of the timing? The Ortega news arrives one day after her co-star Melissa Barrera was dropped from the franchise for controversial social media posts.
‘Scream’ production company Spyglass issued a statement on the situation:
“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.”
And Landon put his own statement on Twitter, but then deleted it:
“This is my statement: ? Everything sucks. Stop yelling. This was not my decision to make.”
What's next for ‘Scream’?
Ghostface in Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Media Group's 'Scream VI.' © 2022 Paramount Pictures. Ghost Face is a Registered Trademark of Fun World Div., Easter Unlimited, Inc. ©1999. All Rights Reserved.
Obviously losing its two main stars (Ortega in particular had been a big draw for the last couple of movies) is a huge issue for the ‘Scream’ series, and it’ll mean some serious reconsideration in creative terms.
There are certainly paths forward, including a movie that returns the focus to the surviving veteran cast, including Courteney Cox (and potentially backing a dump truck full of money to Neve Campbell’s house to try and tempt her back after she skipped the most recent film) or going the reboot route completely with a fresh cast trying survive Ghostface’s stalk-and-slash machinations.
Related Article: Jenna Ortega in Talks to Star in ‘Beetlejuice’ Sequel With Tim Burton Directing
When will the next ‘Scream’ movie be in theaters?
As of now, the new ‘Scream’ is not far enough along to lock down a release date. Especially given that it’ll need a giant re-write…
(L to R) Melissa Barrera (Sam Carpenter), Jenna Ortega (Tara Carpenter), Jasmin Savoy Brown (Mindy Meeks-Martin) and Mason Gooding (Chad Meeks-Martin) star in Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Media Group's 'Scream VI.'
Movies in the ‘Scream' franchise:
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