The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Jenna Ortega has terminated her contract with the Scream franchise. Ortega, who shot to fame last year with the Netflix reprisal of OG goth girl Wednesday Addams, was due to appear in the latest installment of the Scream movies, Scream VII. It was confirmed on Wednesday, November 22nd that Jenna Ortega will not be returning.
Via @jennaortega on Instagram
Jenna Ortega and Melissa Barrera will not return to Scream VII
The news comes one day after her co-star Melissa Barrera was fired from the horror franchise, reportedly due to her support of Palestine on social media.
However, some sources insist that Ortega’s departure is unrelated to Barrera’s firing. According to Deadline, Ortega has dropped out of the sequel due to scheduling conflicts with the second season of her hit Netflix series, Wednesday.
Ortega is one of the biggest young Hollywood names to emerge in the past decade, and her departure alongside Melissa Barrera now puts the future of the franchise in question. Barrera and Ortega ushered in a new era of Scream films as sisters Sam and Tara Carpenter, respectively. The Carpenter sisters brought new life to the original franchise, harnessing a new era of Scream fans. That new life was supposed to continue into Scream VII, but its fate is now in jeopardy after losing its two main leads.
Christopher Landon remains on board as director — for now — but the fate of the movies remains unclear. He tweeted in response to the actresses’ departures on Twitter/X, writing: “This is my statement: Everything sucks. Stop yelling. This was not my decision to make.”
What’s next for Jenna Ortega?
Fear not, our fave goth girl will return to our screens in 2024 with two highly-anticipated releases. The Hollywood trailblazer was cast in the revival of the Beetlejuice, expected for release next Halloween. And Wednesday fans can expect the return of Ortega in season two, projected for release in late 2024.