Why she nearly chose a different path over acting

Before becoming one of Hollywood’s most captivating young stars, Jenna Ortega came remarkably close to walking away from acting altogether. Today, with a slate of high-profile projects and global recognition, that moment of doubt reads less like an ending and more like the prelude to something far bigger.

Long before she led the cultural phenomenon that is ‘Wednesday,’ Ortega found herself at a professional crossroads. After finishing her Disney Channel run on Stuck in the Middle, she entered a difficult stretch defined by rejection, nearly two years of unsuccessful auditions.

The transition from child star to more mature roles proved unexpectedly discouraging. Casting directors either didn’t recognize her or couldn’t see beyond her earlier work, leaving her to feel as though she had to rebuild her identity from the ground up.

At the same time, she was starting high school, which only intensified her sense of uncertainty. Acting, she began to think, might have already run its course.

© Monica Schipper

“When I was a teenager, I’d gotten off of a children’s show, and I didn’t know what I was going to do,” Ortega told Kid Cudi on the April 8 episode of his new podcast, Big Bro With Kid Cudi. “I had to prove myself and meet all these new casting directors who didn’t know who I was. It just felt like a good time to call it quits if I was going to, you know?”

She even considered stepping away entirely to explore other passions, including reigniting her love for soccer. Conversations about leaving the industry stretched on for months, and for a time, the decision felt inevitable.

© Andreas Rentz

Then came the turning point. Ortega landed the role of Ellie Alves in the second season of You, a project that would quietly but decisively alter her trajectory. What she found on that set was not just opportunity, but renewal.

“I was starting high school and, you know, it was a good run sort of thing. And then we had talked about it for a few months, my team and whatever, and then I think I booked that show You. And then I went on that set, and I loved it, and had the best time. And then I thought, ‘Yeah, there’s no way. There’s no way I could let this go.'”

The experience reignited her love for acting, and from that point forward, momentum built quickly. Before ‘You,’ she had already appeared in projects like Elena of Avalor and Big City Greens, but afterward, the scope of her career expanded dramatically. Roles in X, Yes Day, The Fallout, and Scream 5 showcased her range, paving the way for her defining performance as Wednesday Addams, a role that transformed her into a household name.

© The Chosunilbo JNS

Yet behind the rapid ascent, Ortega has been candid about the intensity of her workload. Her daily routine, as she described it on the podcast, leaves little room for anything beyond the job itself.

“You wake up, you go to work, you film, go home, look at your sides, go to bed, do it again. Do it five or six days a week,” she said on the podcast. “There’s not really room for a life. Which, again, lucky, but it is intensive work.”

“It’s almost like sleepwalking, because you’re so exhausted and you’re so used to doing the same thing every day that you’re not really challenging yourself anymore. Fortunately, it’s a creative job, so you’re always finding inspiration in a scene or new character or a premise. But every once in a while, I’ll be like washing my face before bed, and I look up and I think, like, ‘Oh my God, you’re still there.’ Because I haven’t thought about myself in so long,” she said.

© Mike Marsland

After years of nonstop production, including recent films like Beetlejuice Beetlejuice and Death of a Unicorn, she finally stepped back for a rare break, something that felt almost unfamiliar.

“I just had three or four months off of production for the first time in years, years. And I was so scared,” she admitted on the podcast. “I remember everyone saying, ‘Okay, you just take care of yourself.’ Because they know how much I like the job. They know how much I like showing up and shooting.”

Now firmly established, Ortega is stepping into an even more expansive chapter. Wednesday continues to grow, with its second season released in two parts in August and September 2025 and a third already confirmed, though not expected until 2027 due to lengthy production timelines. At the same time, she’s looking beyond acting, developing plans to make her debut as a director and writer, an evolution that signals both ambition and creative control.

© Mike Coppola/MG25

Her upcoming film work reflects that same range and intention. She is set to star in The Great Beyond, directed by J. J. Abrams alongside Glen Powell and Samuel L. Jackson, with an IMAX release slated for November 13, 2026. She will also lead Klara and the Sun, directed by Taika Waititi and based on the novel by Kazuo Ishiguro, as well as appear in The Gallerist, directed by Cathy Yan and co-starring Natalie Portman. There are even early reports linking her to Gremlins 3, though the project remains in the negotiation stage.

What once felt like a natural stopping point ultimately became a quiet turning point. For Jenna Ortega, the idea of leaving acting didn’t mark the end of her story, it sharpened her sense of purpose, setting the stage for a career that continues to evolve with striking momentum.