Who do you think could have played Chani in Dune better than Zendaya? If no other actress comes to your mind, let me tell you that Jenna Ortega probably auditioned for the role.
Jenna Ortega may have tried out for Zendaya’s role in Dune when she was 15.
She said in a recent interview that she had the hunch of auditioning for a role in Denis Villeneuve’s Dune adaptation about six years ago. In an interview with BuzzFeed, the Scream actress spoke about her excitement of coming face-to-face with the renowned director when it was still in the development stage.
Ortega, now 21, feels like she studied for Dune when she was 15. She loved the film and the sequel, and was excited to meet Villeneuve, as he is one of her favorite directors.
She also believed the character she auditioned for was Chani who was ultimately played by Zendaya.
At the time, Ortega argued that all details of the role were being kept secret and nothing was confirmed at any point during casting. She said, “I think it was Chani. I think it was Zendaya. But they weren’t saying that. Everything was very secretive.”
Zendaya, 27, reportedly joined the Dune cast in January 2019, indicating that Villeneuve was likely auditioning actors, including 21-year-old Ortega, months before this incident.
But this wasn’t the first time Ortega auditioned for a role at the age of 15. She has been working in the industry since childhood. In a recent interview with the New York Times, Ortega looked back on her early career, saying that sometimes she wishes she wouldn’t have started so young, but ultimately she has no regrets and wouldn’t change anything.
The Wednesday sensation recently teamed up with Espresso hitmaker Sabrina Carpenter for her Taste music video, which largely nods to the films Death Becomes Her and Scream. This unexpected collaboration, as part of Carpenter’s Short N Sweet studio album, has racked up nearly 30 million views in no time.
Jenna Ortega is currently promoting her latest film Beetlejuice. In the sequel to the 1988 comedy by Tim Burton, she plays Astrid Dietz. This is another project of Ortega working with Burton. They previously collaborated for Netflix’s Wednesday. The film will hit theaters on September 6.
Also read: ‘It’s wrong. It’s disgusting’: Jenna Ortega says world ‘must deal with the consequences’ of AI; reveals ‘horrifying’ incidents
