Mason Gooding Says He Had E. Coli While Filming “Scream 7”, Had a Large 'Home Depot Bucket' for Vomiting Between Takes
Mason Gooding Says He Had E. Coli While Filming “Scream 7”, Had a Large 'Home Depot Bucket' for Vomiting Between Takes
Cara Lynn ShultzWed, February 25, 2026 at 7:41 PM UTC
0
Mason Gooding in Los Angeles in February 2026.Credit: Vivien Killilea/Getty -
Scream 7 star Mason Gooding says he had an E. Coli infection when he filmed his scenes for the horror movie
Gooding said he would “pull this Home Depot bucket up” to vomit between takes
He said the sickness “works for his character,” and that “it added to Chad's demeanor”
Scream 7 star Mason Gooding says he was violently ill while filming his scenes for the horror flick, and recalls throwing up in a “Home Depot bucket” between takes.
"I happened to get E. coli the day before filming it," Gooding, 29, told Entertainment Weekly of his scene, which he describes as “a fairly integral scene to the plot” of the hotly anticipated film, in theaters Feb. 27.
Mason Gooding said he hid a Home Depot bucket under the bar while filming Scream 7.'Credit: Jessica Miglio/Paramount Pictures
For the seventh installment of the horror franchise, he plays Chad Meeks-Martin, nephew of the original horror expert Randy (Jamie Kennedy). But when it came time to film, "I was mentally present for none of it," Gooding told EW.
"They would call cut, and I'd pull this Home Depot bucket up from under the bar, and I'd...uh, you know, do what you have to do to not feel sick anymore. Then they'd go, 'All right, we're going back in!' I'd put it down, and I'd clean it out, and I'd come back inside.”
Advertisement
— sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
The unintended method acting helped him on set, he says. “So there's a scene where I look like I'm dying, and it's arguably because I am, but it works for the character," he said. He didn’t share further details about the plot, which centers around a new Ghostface that is again terrorizing the murder-weary characters. Gooding’s Chad, he tells the outlet, “has been through it and is not really game emotionally for getting back into it."
The brutal E. Coli dovetailed with his set days: "There are certain illnesses that have those names that sound like they belong in the Oregon Trail PC game. This felt like one of 'em."
Mason Gooding said he kept a big Home Depot bucket to vomit in while filming 'Scream 7.'Credit: Amanda Edwards/Getty; Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire via Getty
The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!
Although he didn’t share how he contracted E. Coli, it generally stems from eating food or drinking water contaminated with the bacteria, causing watery diarrhea, vomiting, and a fever, Cleveland Clinic says, explaining that it usually stems from “fecal-oral” transmission (aka, poop in your food or water).
"But here I am. I survived. I lost a bunch of weight. It was really unfortunate. But also, again, I think it added to Chad's demeanor. So you take the good with the bad."
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
