Melissa Barrera is promoting KEEP BREATHING, her new TV series that starts streaming on Netflix this Thursday (28). The interviews are happening in Montreal, during the breaks of the filming of SCREAM 6 – one of the most anticipated projects of 2023, and she could not escape the questions about it.

“They have us so tight-lipped around here. All I can say is how it feels. […] This sixth movie feels scarier and we’re all on sets shooting some of the scenes and we’re like, ‘Oh my God, this is insane.’ I think people are gonna be surprised.”

After successfully delivering SCREAM (2022), and respectfully connecting the past with the present, the next step in the evolution of the franchise is to have new elements and a more authorial style added by talented directors Matt Bettineli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett:

“In the fifth movie, there was a lot of pressure [with it being] the first without Wes [Craven] and they were still trying to honor him. [They were trying to make] something that still felt familiar but had their own touch. Now they’re putting a little more of their sauce into it,” she reveals.

Some of the “toppings” they are adding include Samara Weaving, Hayden Panettiere, and Dermot Mulroney:

“Hayden [is a] legacy character that we get to have back and that’s exciting. And then Dermot, who I grew up watching. I loved him. [So] meeting him and knowing how much of a sweetheart he is and how funny — he just came right in and fit right into the group dynamic. It’s been fun.”

Neve Campbell exiting the production, aka the elephant in the room of all future interviews about this installment, was also discussed:

“It’s hard thinking that we’re making a movie without her. We can’t get too hung up on that because we gotta make another movie.”

“Of course Sidney is present. Her essence is present in the movie, you can’t just ignore that. We were all heartbroken, but we totally understand and respect her decision and hopefully, if we get to make another one, we can have her back.”

We’re all counting on it! Meanwhile, we’re also excited about KEEP BREATHING!

It worked very well for Jasmin Savoy Brown, in YELLOWJACKETS, to plane crash into the wild, at her own luck and we can’t wait to see how Melissa does in that situation.

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[Edited 08.04] Added a new interview from eTalk CTV: