Actor Jenna Ortega has revealed why she no longer plans to compliment fans who recreate her iconic Wednesday look for Halloween, admitting she feels like a “creep” when she does so.
Jenna Ortega, 24, has opened up about how her media training continues to shape the way she handles fame, particularly when meeting fans – interactions she admits can sometimes be overwhelming.
Speaking on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Ortega recalled being taught to recognize how significant a brief encounter with a celebrity can be for a fan.
“They told us, you know, ‘Every time someone meets you, it’s probably the only time they’re ever going to interact with you, like that’s a very special moment in their lives. So just be aware of that,'” she said, according to UNILAD.
“Sometimes I try to give myself grace, and I’m trying to have better boundaries.”
Ortega went on to describe how her attempts to compliment fans dressed as Wednesday Addams for Halloween have occasionally left her feeling uncomfortable.
Appearing on Greatest Hits Radio, she was asked whether she would dress up as the character herself.
“Not as myself, no,” she replied.
Jenna Ortega on meeting fans
Ortega also recalled an awkward encounter in New York, where she spotted a young girl dressed as Wednesday’s roommate, Enid. Her attempt to compliment the young fan did not go as she had hoped.
“I saw this Enid and I said, ‘oh my God, I love your costume, you look great’. And she looked at me like I was a creep,” she said and went on to describe how she had a similar experience with a ‘six-year-old blonde girl’.
“Her wig was falling off,” she described, “And I told her, ‘oh, you look so beautiful’. And she looked at me and then ran back to her classmates.”
Since those encounters, Ortega has changed how she approaches fans dressed as characters from Wednesday, opting to leave them alone rather than risk making them uncomfortable.
“I’m done in that department,” she said.
Reflecting on her interactions with young fans in public, Ortega acknowledged that while some encounters can be heartwarming, others are more difficult to navigate.
“Kids and things like that, of course. It is a lot, though.
“And, again, it’s sweet. Some of the interactions are so sweet, and then some of them are a little bit more embarrassing or aggressive or mean. And it’s hard to know what the balance is. But you just… I do what I can.”
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