Jenna Ortega made her on-screen debut as “Girl” in the Rob Schneider sitcom Rob. Her career has slightly improved since then. The X, Wednesday, and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice actress is on the cover of next month’s Vanity Fair, where she talked about what got her into acting (it wasn’t a hope that, one day, she would be at the center of weird age-gap discourse).
“I’m so appreciative of my six-year-old self who wanted to be a president and an astronaut… because I realize now that I was always looking for a way out,” Ortega said. She found her way out after watching Man on Fire, the 2004 movie starring Denzel Washington and Dakota Fanning. Ortega said the action-thriller “changed the entire course of my existence,” in particular nine-year-old Fanning’s performance, which inspired her to become an actor.
In an alternate timeline, Ortega watches Déjà Vu and devotes her life to going back in time. It’s probably good she saw Man on Fire instead.
Next up for Ortega is Beetlejuice Beetlejuice then season 2 of Wednesday. “I think the feel that we’re going for is a little bit more horror-inspired,” she said about season 2 of the Netflix hit. “Not to say that suddenly we’re the goriest show of all time. I mean, there’s six-year-olds watching.” Ortega gave an example of family-friendly horror: “We’re doing this thing now where Wednesday just kind of appears. She is a little bit of a jump scare herself.”
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice opens in theaters on September 6, while Wednesday season 2 will hopefully premiere in 2025.
(Via Vanity Fair)