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Melissa Barrera, who was fired from the “Scream” franchise due to social media posts criticizing Israel amid the war in Gaza in 2023, is voicing her respect for the musicians who have dropped out of Ed Sheeran’s tour
following Macklemore’s dismissal over his support for Palestine.
“It was so beautiful to see Finneas and the band and all the opening acts pulling out in support of Macklemore,” the actress said (via AP). “It made me emotional. You know, I didn’t get that when it happened to me. I didn’t have any of that happen. It was too soon. People were too scared. But it’s good to see that almost three years later, at least things have changed.”
Macklemore was removed from Ed Sheeran’s U.S. Loop Tour after delivering a political speech and saying “Free Palestine” while onstage at the Sept. 4 concert at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. The singer toldthe audience he wanted people in Gaza and the occupied West Bank to know they had not been forgotten. He was then dropped from the tourdays later on Sep. 14.
In the time since, openers including Finneas and Aaron Rowe have pulled out of the tour, citing their support for the “Thrift Shop” singer.
When Barrera was fired by “Scream” franchise producer Spyglass, the company said it had “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.” She had starred in 2022’s “Scream” and that year’s “Scream VI.”
At the time, Barrera’s fellow “Scream” cast members remained largely mum on her firing. While both Jenna Ortega and director Christopher Landon dropped out of “Scream 7,” released earlier this year, only recently did co-star Matthew Lillard say he feels “ashamed” for starring in the 2026 installment in the horror franchise.
Barrera continued: “When someone is attacked, and there are people behind being like, ‘We’re not gonna allow this,’ and the more that happens, the less that the people in power are going to try to censor it because eventually it’s not gonna work. I can’t help but wonder what would have happened if Ed Sheeran had been like, ‘No,’ and called the bluff. I mean, it’s possible that he still would have had his shows canceled, but I bet you that he could have rebooked those shows in other venues just as easily, and people would have rallied behind him.”
“I wish that the people that have power understood the power that they have,” she concluded. “I think that the problem is that there’s a lot of people that actually have a lot of power. They think they don’t, and they’re operating out of fear, and it’s just a shame because, you know, we just saw what happened—the support that rallied behind Macklemore—and I think that’s a big step. I think that what we’re seeing, what we’re witnessing, is going to inspire real change, and I’m very hopeful about that.”
