Jenna Ortega has emerged as one of Hollywood’s most promising young talents. With her natural acting prowess and a deep connection to the horror genre, she was catapulted to fame with projects like The Babysitter: Killer Queen and Scream. Her portrayal of Wednesday Addams in Netflix’s hit series Wednesday further solidified her reputation in the entertainment business.
As she steps into one of her most anticipated roles yet, starring in the sequel to iconic Beetlejuice, she reflects on the one nightmare that led her to embrace this project.
Jenna Ortega Talks About Her Beetlejuice Nightmare
Jenna Ortega has already proven her acting mettle in the horror franchise by delivering a phenomenon work in the Scream franchise.
Now that her talent is widely recognized, she continues to build on her horror filmography by joining Winona Ryder and Michael Keaton in Beetlejuice 2 (2024), the highly anticipated sequel to the iconic 1988 movie.
Ahead of its release, the cast has been actively promoting the film, bringing new insights, often their personal experiences that have kept audiences hooked.
In a newly released Warner Bros. Pictures video, the movie glimpsed about Ortega’s character, Astrid Deetz, daughter of Ryder’s character, Lydia. The actress herself revealed an exciting detail about her personal life, making her role in the movie extra amazing.
In a candid interview, Ortega shared how Beetlejuice, the iconic character from Tim Burton’s 1988 cult classic, haunted her dreams for years. She revealed,
I was scared of everything when I was younger. I would have recurring nightmares of Beetlejuice where he would show up and offer me grape juice.
In another New York Times interview, she detailed her experience, admitting that watching the movie as a kid easily frightened her. However, she was introduced to Keaton’s character way before watching the movie.
Jenna Ortega Was Introduced to Beetlejuice on One Halloween
In the NYT interview, the 21-year-old actress reflected on how she got introduced to the character. She reflected on a poorly made Halloween costume which left her with an unsettling image stuck in her mind.
She shared,
I actually had a recurring nightmare about Beetlejuice. I saw a really terrible Halloween costume before I really knew what the movie was, and I think that the mold and smearing, bleeding green and black Party City makeup gave me a scare.
She continued,
I just remember that image, and then I watched the movie later, and I thought, Oh, man, this is what the guy was dressed as. This is just as scary.
She shared a sneak peek of her childhood tales about sleeping on the bottom bunk of a bunk bed.
She delved into her nightmares stating that the character would appear in her dream, wearing a Superman cape and “swing around the banister to my bunk.” He would then offer her grape juice and say, “Got any grape?”
This dream continued to haunt her in her childhood but ended up developing a nostalgic factor to it. It’s quite ironic that she ended up involving herself with the franchise, which once haunted her for years.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will be released in theatres nationwide on September 6.
