Salary concerns affect not only ordinary people but also actors and actresses.
Actress Neve Campbell has formally announced her departure from the Scream franchise, issuing a harsh statement justifying her decision. The pay she was offered to return for a sixth film did not reflect the 'value' she has brought to the highly successful horror franchise.
What's your favorite scary movie? For one actress, at least, it won't be "Scream 6."
Series star Neve Campbell won't return for next year's "Scream 6″ after she was apparently low-balled during salary negotiations.
'Sadly I won't be making the next Scream film,' Campbell said in a statement released Monday, effectively bowing out of the sixth installment.
'As a woman I have had to work extremely hard in my career to establish my value, especially when it comes to Scream,' she explained.
Hinting at issues surrounding her salary she added: 'I felt the offer that was presented to me did not equate to the value I have brought to the franchise.'
'It's been a very difficult decision to move on. To all my Scream fans, I love you. You've always been so incredibly supportive to me. I'm forever grateful to you and to what this franchise has given me over the past 25 years,' she concluded.
Campbell, 48, has played protagonist Sidney Prescott in all five Scream films since 1996, most recently reprising the role in this year's revival.
The most recent revival of the film, which reintroduced original performers Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette, earned $140 million at the box office against a $24 million budget.
Production on the sixth slasher film begins this summer, with Cox set to reprise her role as Gale Weathers.
Campbell previously told Entertainment Tonight that she was unsure about returning for the sixth film saying: 'I don't know if I am,' adding that she 'can't get into it.'
In stark contrast, Cox told ET that the script for the film is 'really good.'
'I don't know about contracts and where things are, but I'll tell you in the script — it's a really good one,' the Friends star said.
The 1996 original, directed by Wes Craven and written by Kevin Williamson, was credited with reviving the slasher genre as a huge box office draw.
It grossed $173million in the US against a $15million budget.
Campbell was reportedly paid $1,500,000 for the first film, $3,500,000 for the second, and $4,000,000 for the third.
It is unclear how much she earned from the fourth and fifth installments of the franchise, while 'back end arrangements' for salary are customary in Hollywood.
A back-end arrangement typically involves the primary performer lowering their compensation cost for a part of the box office revenues, which could be quite lucrative for a film like Scream.
Campbell has expressed reservations about returning to the brand following the loss of Wes Craven in 2015.
Following news of Campbell's departure, film critic Chris Evangelista tweeted: 'SCREAM belongs to Neve Campbell. They should be paying her pretty much whatever she wants at this point.'
Filmmaker Julie Cohen wrote: 'I'm too chickensh*t to watch the Scream movies. But even I know that there is no Scream without Neve Campbell.'
Elizabeth Wagmeister said 'good for her' and pointed out that horror films are 'generally low budget & make a killing. Curious if Neve's statement will generate enough outrage to force the studio's hand.'
Meanwhile, an insider claimed to The Blast that filmmakers were not expecting Campbell to drop out and will now need to make significant changes to the script.
According to the unnamed insider, directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett are now said to be revising the script and hoping that it will not be delayed.
