Jenna Ortega originally turned down “Wednesday” to focus on the film

March 14, 2023

“I was afraid that by signing on to another television show, it might prevent me from doing other work that I really wanted and was interested in,” the “Scream VI” star said.

Jenna Ortega knew “Wednesday” was coming at a pivotal time in her career.

The former child star has already had a decade of TV roles and was focusing on bolstering her film career just as her icon Tim Burton-helmed Netflix series was in the casting process.

“I received the email, forwarded it. I’ve done so much TV in my life that I only ever wanted to make movies,” Ortega said The Sunday Times. “When I started acting, I don’t want to say that no one believed in me, but at the same time, no one believed in me. You have to prove yourself. I was only able to start filming in the last three or four years.”

She continued: “I was afraid that by signing on to another television show, it might prevent me from doing other jobs that I really wanted and that I was really interested in doing. The only reason I went back is because Tim (Burton) is a great legend and we just happened to get along really well. But even then I said a few times (several times) “oh no, I think I’m fine.”

Ortega recently admitted that he had to “put my foot down on a set” when it came to certain “Wednesday” scenarios.

“There were times on set where I even became unprofessional in a way when I just started changing lines,” the “You” alum shared. The script supervisor thought I’d come up with something and then I’d have to sit down with the writers and they’d be like, “Wait, what happened to the scene?” And I’d have to go through and explain why I can’t do certain things.”

He continued: “I was very, very protective of him, but you can’t lead a story and not have an emotional arc because then it’s boring and nobody likes you. And Wednesday is a teenager. When you’re little and you say morbid, offensive things, it’s funny and endearing and, “Aha, you can’t do any better.” But then you become a teenager, it’s like, “Now you’re ugly and you know it.” There are fewer excuses.”

Ortega concluded: “In a job like Wednesday, I tried something completely different. I am naturally a very expressive person. I haven’t really done a teen show like this before. It’s not the kind of TV I usually watch, so it really didn’t suit me.”

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