Scream 7: Melissa Barrera wants Salma Hayek to play her mother

Last Updated on February 5, 2024

There’s no guarantee that we’re going to get a Scream 7, but since Scream VI (read our review HERE) had the biggest opening weekend of any film in the Scream franchise and has already made over $75 million at the global box office, there’s a good chance it’s going to happen. Scream VI and Scream 2022 directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett have said they’re hoping for more sequels, whether they’re involved with them or not, and also said they would try to get Neve Campbell and her character Sidney Prescott into another sequel if they are involved. During an interview with CinePOP, Scream VI and Scream 2022 star Melissa Barrera also had a casting suggestion for the next sequel: she wants Salma Hayek, who can currently be seen in Magic Mike’s Last Dance, to play the mother of her character Samantha Carpenter and her younger sister Tara Carpenter (played by Jenna Ortega).

Christina Carpenter, the mother of Sam and Tara, is clearly not a great person. Sam was conceived when Christina cheated on her boyfriend with original Scream killer Billy Loomis. She kept that secret for years, telling her boyfriend that he was Sam’s father, marrying him and having Tara years later. Then Sam discovered the truth about her father, the Carpenter family fell apart, and Christina has had a rough relationship with her daughters ever since. She was on a business trip during the events of Scream 2022 and didn’t seem too concerned about the safety of her daughters during that Ghostface killing spree, and by the events of Scream VI she’s estranged from both of them.

When CinePOP asked Barrera who she would like to have play her mother in the next movie(s), Barrera answered, “I am dying to work with Salma Hayek, so it would be a dream come true to have her come in as the mom. It would be awesome!“

While we wait to find out whether or not Scream 7 is going to happen (and if Hayek is going to be in the cast), Scream VI is tearing up theatre screens. Scripted by Scream 2022 writers James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick, this one shows what happens when the four survivors of the Ghostface killings leave Woodsboro behind and start a fresh chapter.

Those four survivors are the returning Scream 2022 characters played by Melissa Barrera (as Samantha Carpenter), Jenna Ortega (as Samantha’s sister Tara Carpenter), Mason Gooding (as Mindy’s brother Chad Meeks-Martin), and Jasmin Savoy Brown (as Mindy Meeks-Martin). They’re seeking to start a fresh chapter in New York City… but while the story is set in New York, the movie was filmed in Montreal.

Also in the cast are franchise regular Courteney Cox (as Gale Weathers), Scream 4 star Hayden Panettiere (as Kirby Reed), and new additions Dermot Mulroney as Detective Bailey, Samara Weaving as Laura, Tony Revolori as Jason, Liana Liberato as Quinn, Josh Segarra as Danny, Jack Champion as Ethan, Devyn Nekoda as Anika, and Henry Czerny as Dr. Stone.

Neve Campbell was asked to reprise the role of Sidney Prescott in Scream VI, but passed on it due to a pay dispute.

Vanderbilt produced Scream VI with Paul Neinstein and William Sherak for Project X Entertainment. Original Scream screenwriter Kevin Willamson serves as executive producer alongside Chad Villella, Ron Lynch, Cathy Konrad, Marianne Maddalena, and Spyglass’s Gary Barber and Peter Oillataguerre.

Would you like to see Salma Hayek play Christina Carpenter in Scream 7? Share your thoughts on this casting idea by leaving a comment below.