Though Jenna Ortega has been a working actor since she was a child, she’s becoming more of a household name thanks to her new show, Wednesday. The comedy-horror series has become an instant hit for Netflix and has already been streamed over a billion times. Ortega has successfully reimagined the iconic Wednesday Addams for a new audience. And while she’s been compared to the sarcastic character her entire life, she was very taken aback when she first learned that Tim Burton wanted to meet with her about the role.
Jenna Ortega thought she was being pranked when Tim Burton handpicked her for ‘Wednesday’
Burton had a huge hand in the making of Wednesday. Not only did he direct the first four episodes, but he also served as an executive producer for the show. The filmmaker also handpicked a good chunk of the cast, including Ortega for the titular role. While speaking with Teen Vogue, Ortega recalled her first meeting with Burton, which took place via zoom while she was working in New Zealand.
“I first heard about the role of Wednesday shooting a horror film with A24 called X,” Ortega recalled. “And I got an email one day that Tim Burton wanted to meet with me for the role of Wednesday Addams. I was pretty taken aback. I didn’t know if he had any familiarity with who I was. But then also Wednesday, I actually was compared to my entire life. So it was just kind of a weird circumstance. I kind of felt like I was being pranked or something.”
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The actor was shooting a horror film when she auditioned for the role of Wednesday Addams
While Ortega may have felt like Burton was pranking her, in the end, Burton may have felt like the reverse was true. Because Ortega was shooting a horror film, when she hopped on Zoom to meet Burton, she was covered in fake blood. While speaking with Christina Ricci for Interview Magazine, The Fallout actor got candid about how the director reacted to her appearance.
“I had just done a whole night shoot, and I had cuts and prosthetics all over my face,” Ortega recalled. “I got on the phone with Tim, and he just laughed. We kept talking and talking, and eventually, I realized this is something that could be really interesting to be a part of.”
Ortega officially joined the ‘Wednesday’ cast a few months after her conversation with Burton
But what did the conversation between Ortega and Burton consist of? The director had Ortega read the sides for Wednesday once. After her audition, they talked about how they viewed the character and Burton’s vision for the series. After the conversation, Ortega was excited about the possibility of working with Burton. And about five to five months after the zoom call, she signed on to play Wednesday Addams. The rest, as they say, is history,
