- Primary Subject: Matthew Lillard
- Key Update: Matthew Lillard expressed regret and embarrassment over returning for Scream 7.
- Status: Confirmed
- Last Verified: September 17, 2026
- Quick Answer: Matthew Lillard feels "ashamed" of returning for Scream 7, acknowledging he overlooked Melissa Barrera’s firing over her political views and ended up on the wrong side of history.
Matthew Lillard has expressed regret about his decision to return to Scream 7 following the firing of Melissa Barrera.
Despite his iconic character's death in the first film, the actor managed to reprise his role in the horror franchise's most recent installment, where he showed up as the AI version. However, some fans also criticized his decision to return, as they felt that it was a betrayal of Barrera, who was fired over her views on the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Why Matthew Lillard Regrets Returning to Scream 7
In a Q&A session for a Scream 30th anniversary screening (via EW), Matthew Lillard was asked by a fan about the difficulty of speaking about the political issues as a public figure.
"I don’t know how else to do it. For me, I have queer kids. If I’m not standing up for queer kids or kids in the trans community, then what the f*** am I doing? If I’m not standing up against ICE, then what the f*** am I doing?" he said. "I don’t think it’s easy all the time."
Lillard brought up Melissa Barrera's firing as he cited it as an example since her career was affected by her political views.
"Melissa Barrera, who’s a beautiful actor, was fired for what she said after the whole Palestinian— what started happening in Israel. It’s really f***ing bulls*** and really hard, and she’s on the right side of history. When they start coming after your job, sometimes things are worth it," he said.
"When that happened to Melissa, the whole world didn’t pipe up. But she was a year early on what the f***’s going on. But the whole world should have popped up and said, ‘She’s right.’ And they didn’t. And that’s brutal."
Lillard eventually expressed his regret over agreeing to return to Scream 7 after Barrera's situation.
"I went back to do Scream, and I got called out. And I’m like, ‘Oh, f***. That’s brutal.’ I feel bad about that. I feel ashamed about that. Because in that moment I was so excited to go back, I didn’t really think about Melissa and that journey. I didn’t say no," he added.
"I’m embarrassed, that’s the truth… I blew that. I’m on the wrong side of history for that. I still like being in the movie [but] it may not have been the best idea."
Is Scream 8 Already in the Works?
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Spyglass has started development on Scream 8, following the box office success of the seventh film earlier this year.
So far, the plot details are still under wraps since it is still in the very early stages. It might take a while before fans will be able to find out whether Sidney Prescott will be the main focus of the story once again.
Lilla and Nora Zuckerman, who worked on hit shows such as Poker Face and Agents of SHIELD, have been tapped to write the screenplay. They recently worked on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer revival project that was canceled by Hulu.
During the world premiere of Scream 7, Kevin Williamson revealed that he and Neve Campbell had already been brainstorming concepts. It's unclear why he is not working on the screenplay at the moment.
"When you’re sitting on the set at 3:00 in the morning, you’re like, ‘Well, what would Scream 8 be about?’ And you just start spit-balling," he said.
"And Neve had this great idea, and everyone seemed to run with it. So yeah, if this movie works and people want it, we’re here for the fans. So, if they want it, we’ll certainly give it to them."
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