20 Questions On Deadline Podcast: Jenna Ortega Talks ‘Wednesday’ & ‘Scream 6’ Move To NYC: “It Was Just A Lot More Intense”

Antonia Blyth
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Today’s guest is Jenna Ortega.

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Coming to us from the set of her as-yet under wraps current project, which she describes as “a little indie”, Ortega gets into the challenges of her role on new Netflix series Wednesday, in which she plays the titular character Wednesday Addams. While shooting in “a Romanian snowstorm” Ortega learned—under Tim Burton’s instruction—to “never blink again”. She also studied fencing, and now has ramrod straight posture: “I can balance books on my head,” she says.

Coming up though, Ortega of course has the sixth film in the Scream franchise. She resumes her role as Tara Carpenter, but this time the action has moved to New York City.

“We were shooting in Montreal and it was lovely,” she says, “but it was just a lot more intense.” Ortega especially enjoyed fleshing out her character this time around. After her first go-round in Scream 5, she was “only ever crying and screaming on the floor, so on this second one, I had to interact with my other cast mates and give her some sort of a personality.”

In the 20 Questions portion of the chat, Ortega reveals how the movie Man on Fire inspired her to act at age six, and how she told her parents she would be “the next Puerto Rican Dakota Fanning.” Plus, she gets into her ambition to become a musical composer, her all-time dream dinner companion and the person she calls her hero.

Ortega also discusses her upcoming role in Miller’s Girl with Martin Freeman, which she wrapped in October. “It’s probably the most complex character that I’ve ever played and the material is a bit risky,” she says.

Then there’s Finestkind with Ben Foster, Toby Wallace and Tommy Lee Jones, which she describes as “a really beautiful experience.”

To hear more about Scream 6, Wednesday and Ortega’s dreams for the future, check out this episode of 20 Questions on Deadline above, and listen and subscribe on Spotify and Apple podcasts.

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