At 22 years old, Jenna Ortega deserves to move beyond the child star label.
The Hurry Up Tomorrow star has evolved past her Disney Channel days yet still portrays teen Wednesday Addams in the Netflix series Wednesday. While the show’s second season drops this summer, Ortega shared her concerns with Harper’s Bazaar about being perceived as a child due to her role.
“I’ve always gravitated toward darker themes or found them intriguing, but coming from Disney meant embodying that bubbly, kind, and overly sweet persona,” she explained.
Regarding Wednesday, Ortega explained, “I’m committed to a show I’ll be working on for years playing a schoolgirl. But I’m also a young woman.”
When Harper’s writer Carina Chocano connected Ortega’s frustrations to those experienced by former child star Natalie Portman, Ortega described it as “really annoying because you just don’t feel like you’re being taken seriously.”
“You know, it’s like how you’re dressed in the schoolgirl costume. … There’s just something about it that’s very patronizing,” she went on. “Also, when you’re short, people are already physically looking down on you.”
Another consequence of Wednesday is that Ortega has been “catapulted” into stardom, and she revealed she longs for “anonymity.”
“As grateful as I am, and it was a dream role, it was so nice to have had way less pressure,” Ortega shared with The Weeknd for V Magazine. “I love the hustle. There’s something about the actor’s come-up and struggle that I really enjoyed.”
