Jenna Ortega’s Scream 7 Exit Confirms How Massive Her Other $75 Million Horror Franchise Revival Will Be Next Year

Jenna Ortega won’t be returning for Scream 7, which gives her classic horror franchise revival in 2024 an even bigger importance in her filmography. Following a string of massive movie and TV successes in 2022 with Scream, X, and Wednesday, Ortega quickly established a name for herself as a certified Scream Queen and one of the most bankable young actresses in Hollywood. As her high-profile upcoming projects continued to line up, the most anticipated among the bunch were Wednesday season 2, Beetlejuice 2, and Scream 7, though recent news confirms that the latter is now out of the equation.

After portraying Tara Carpenter in the Scream reboot movies, Scream (2022) and Scream 6 (2023), Ortega was positioned as one of the two main leads to carry on the 1996-debuting slasher franchise. However, it was widely reported on November 22, 2023 that Jenna Ortega will not return for Scream 7, with such news arriving only one day after the announcement that her co-star and on-screen sister, Melissa Barrera, was fired from the upcoming project. While the future of the Scream franchise is unclear, Ortega is still expected to have a big year at the box office, as she has joined the lead cast of another, even more anticipated revival of a major horror movie franchise arriving in 2024.

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Jenna Ortega Leaving Scream 7 Means Beetlejuice Is Now Her Biggest Horror Movie Franchise

Despite leaving Scream behind, Ortega has no shortage of high-profile horror franchises she’s now leading into the future. Apart from her hit Addams Family spinoff show Wednesday, Ortega’s most significant horror movie franchise is now Beetlejuice, her second collaboration with filmmaker Tim Burton. Beetlejuice, one of the most beloved horror-comedies of all time, is finally receiving its long-awaited sequel after more than 35 years, with Beetlejuice 2 scheduled to be released in theaters on September 6, 2024. Ortega stars in Beetlejuice 2 as Lydia Deetz’s (Winona Ryder) daughter, giving her yet another test in taking over the reins of a classic horror property.

While Ortega could potentially have had three huge releases in fall 2024 with the predicted premieres of Beetlejuice 2, Wednesday season 2, and Scream 7, her exit from the latter gives the former two far more weight. Ortega was cited as a major reason for Scream 6’s record-breaking box office success following her Wednesday breakout. However, with Ortega leaving Scream 7, there won’t be a related theatrical split between the slasher sequel and Beetlejuice 2. Her Scream 7 exit could even increase Beetlejuice 2’s box office prospects as fans flood theaters for her next big horror role. While Beetlejuice has earned approximately $75 million since its 1988 release (via Box Office Mojo), the sequel is expected to easily double the original’s earnings.

Beetlejuice 3 Shouldn’t Happen (Even If The Sequel Is A Huge Box Office Hit)

Beetlejuice 2 is predicted to be a big box office success thanks to its star-studded cast, enticing premise as a follow-up to a classic beloved of multiple generations, Tim Burton’s return, and its 36-year delay. However, as exciting as its commercial prospects are, Beetlejuice 2 being a smash hit shouldn’t be followed by another sequel. Beetlejuice now stands as Ortega’s biggest film-based horror franchise, but Beetlejuice 3 shouldn’t be greenlit simply because the 2024 sequel is financially fruitful. Beetlejuice 3 is apt to be expected if the second outing is successful, but the franchise shouldn’t force another movie out of the story just because it can.

Tim Burton has also proven to be highly selective with the movies to which he grants a sequel. Over nearly 40 years as a feature film director, Burton has only returned to direct two sequels to his past movies: Batman Returns (1992) and Beetlejuice 2 (2024). Burton has also rejected making another The Nightmare Before Christmas movie, so he would be unlikely to return for Beetlejuice 3 unless he found an irresistible story for another follow-up. While Beetlejuice 3 could happen further down the line, especially with more demand likely to grow after her Scream 7 exit, Ortega isn’t apt to reprise her role in the Deetz family anytime soon.