Jenna Ortega reveals her Scream 5 audition story, turning 18 on set, and how she landed back-to-back roles with today’s top horror directors.
Before she became today’s reigning scream queen, Jenna Ortega was promoting Yes Day, a lighthearted Netflix comedy about kids getting their way for 24 hours. But behind the scenes, she was already preparing to leave that wholesome world behind for something bloodier — Scream 5 and Ti West’s X.
During the press tour, Jenna opened up about her Scream V audition and the surprising way she landed one of 2022’s most anticipated horror roles.
Auditioning during lockdown
“I remember I auditioned for Scream in the very beginning of quarantine. Like back in March, and I auditioned for a different character than the one I ended up playing,” Jenna recalled.
“I didn’t hear anything for months and months. I thought I didn’t get it — which I wasn’t surprised about, because oftentimes when teenagers are cast in projects, they’re like 30 years old. So I just figured, ‘Oh, they’re going to cast people that are older,’ and they did cast people that are older. I don’t know how I stepped into the mix, but I did. I was very, very lucky, and before I knew it, I was flying out to North Carolina to shoot.”
Her timing couldn’t have been better — Scream 5 was one of the first major productions to restart during the pandemic, and Jenna turned 18 right there on set.
