Hollywood Writers Make Jabs at Jenna Ortega Amidst Their Strike
Jenna Ortega’s past comments on the writing in Netflix’s Wednesday are now fueling the Writers Guild of America’s strike.
Film and television writers are on strike as they negotiate a better union contract with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, including studios like Amazon, Apple, Disney, Paramount, and Netflix. Jenna Ortega’s previous comments about contributing to improving Wednesday’s writing are now fueling online jabs and picket signs.
The comments are about an interview in which Ortega discussed her involvement in changing the script of the hit Netflix series. In March, the actress was a guest on the podcast Armchair Expert where she shared, “There were times on that set where I even became almost unprofessional in a sense where I just started changing lines.”
Many writers reference Ortega’s comments as they push for an improved union contract with their strike. BoJack Horseman writer Nick Adams recently tweeted, “Jenna Ortega better be back from NY for her afternoon shift on the picket line.”
Jenna Ortega better be back from NY for her afternoon shift on the picket line.
— Nick “Labor Organizer” Adams (@nickadamsweb) May 2, 2023
Karen Joseph Adcock, a writer for The Bear, chimed in online when she tweeted, “Rewriting is writing! See you at the line, Jenna.”
Rewriting is writing! See you at the line, Jenna! 🖤 https://t.co/9S3TfBXW4c
— Karen Joseph Adcock (@ckharyn) May 3, 2023
Offline, several other jabs were made at the Wednesday star on signs in the picket line. One sign read, “Without writers, Jenna Ortega will have nothing to punch up!”
Fans of the actress quickly came to her defense online, citing her as nothing more than the scapegoat for larger issues that are ultimately out of her control. One Twitter user called these writers out for bullying the young star, stating, “WGA might want to nip the bullying of Jenna Ortega in the bud because I’m really side-eyeing a bunch of adult writers going after a young actress making mildly thoughtless comments instead of the executives actually making their life h*ll.”
WGA might want to nip the bullying of Jenna Ortega in the bud because I’m really side-eyeing a bunch of adult writers going after a young actress making mildly thoughtless comments instead of the executives actually making their life hell. It’s not as cute as they seem to think.
— thewillowbends (@thewillowbends1) May 5, 2023
Contrastingly, another user called out the media outlets for attempting to “shift public opinion against striking workers” by painting the writers as bullies. Of the various differing opinions, Ortega herself has yet to comment on the matter. As over 11,000 writers remain on strike, the production of several regular and special programs has been halted.
mfs will publish anything to shift public opinion against striking workers. “striking writers mock ‘wednesday’ star jenna ortega.” no they didn’t. that isn’t true. https://t.co/qjp7OzvHQ5
— amanda (@marisatomay) May 4, 2023
Many late-night programs, including Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, have ceased production. Additionally, Drew Barrymore recently dropped out of hosting the upcoming MTV Movie & TV Awards in solidarity with the writers.
As the strike continues, members of the Writers Guild of America don’t seem to be letting up in the negotiation, which will hopefully reach a fair decision soon.
