Your favorite scary movie is not collecting balance.
After Scream 2 star Craig Shoemaker shared on Instagram that he was paid $34.09 for his role in the 1997 horror film, fans rushed to the comments section to criticize him.
“A quarter of a century ago, you were in bit roles in sequels to multiple movie series. I don’t know if you’re furious or just a legitimate whiner,” one follower commented under the post.
Shoemaker, 61, responded, “How about none of the above, the anger inside you is the only bait? (lol)”
Another social media user added: “Better than nothing.” “Would a better negotiation change things? Because you were a day player.”
“That was said in a humorous way and nothing else. If you don’t get it, move on,” Shoemaker responded to applause.
Some found humor in Shoemaker’s post, with one fan chiming in: “Now then…don’t be offended…that’s $34 before taxes. Sooooo $25?”
“Oh, yeah,” the actor replied. “I wasn’t thinking about that. Now I just have hot dogs and lemonade.”
“In 1997, I was cast in the role of a film professor in Scream 2, the sequel to the original Scream movie, where I led a conversation in class about the movie’s sequel,” Ms. Shoemaker originally wrote on Tuesday, along with a shot of the letter.
“The rest keeps coming, baby! What can I buy for $34?” he teased.
“Scream” premiered in 1996 and starred Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Skeet Ulrich, Rose McGowan, Matthew Lillard, and Jamie Kennedy.
The sequel was released in theaters a year later in 1997 and followed the college life of Sidney Prescott (Campbell).
In addition to Campbell, the cast also includes Arquette, Cox, Kennedy, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Laurie Metcalf, Jerry O’Connell, Timothy Olyphant, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Liev Schreiber.
According to IMDb, Shoemaker is credited with playing an “art teacher” in the film.
In 2022, Campbell, 52, decided to quit the series’ sixth film due to a pay dispute.
“Unfortunately, I have no intention of making another Scream movie,” she said in a statement to Page Six at the time.
“As a woman, I’ve had to work extremely hard to establish my worth in my career, especially when it comes to ‘Scream.’
The series returned to the spotlight in 2023 after Melissa Barrera was fired from Scream 7 following a series of comments she made regarding the Israel-Hamas war.
Jenna Ortega, who co-starred with Barrera in 2022’s “Scream” and 2023’s “Scream VI,” also announced that she has left the series.
Meanwhile, Ulrich, 56, confirmed to the Post that he was scheduled to appear in Scream 7 until Barrera was fired, despite his death in the previous film.
The actress played his daughter in the film.
But nearly 30 years after the iconic slasher series first debuted, Scream 7, which premiered in February of this year, reunited most of the OG cast.
Campbell and Cox made a comeback, along with Lillard (56) and Arquette (54), even though their characters were killed off. Metcalfe, 71, and Scott Foley also reprized roles they played in previous films.
The film marked frequent Scream creator/screenwriter Kevin Williamson’s directorial debut following the 2015 death of Wes Craven, who directed the first four films in the series. Williamson took over after Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillette, who served as managers in 2022 and 2023, left the team.
“Oh, I’m so glad (to be back),” he told the Post last summer. “I’ve always been on the sidelines for the last few Scream movies, kind of the grandfather of the series.”
