Actor Jenna Ortega, who is best known for playing the titular role in Netflix's hit web series Wednesday, recently revealed that she has a hunch that she auditioned for Denis Villeneuve’s Dune adaptation six years ago.
“I think it was Chani, I think it was Zendaya’s,” Ortega recalled in a BuzzFeed interview when she was asked, "What's a role people would be suprised you auditioned for?". She added to her response, “But they weren’t saying that, everything was very secret.” Ortega also mentioned that she was a big fan of the film and the franchise and noted that Denis Villeneuve is one of her favourite filmmakers.
In addition to Zendaya, the critically acclaimed first installment of the sci-fi film based on the 1965 novel Dune by Frank Herbert went on to also star Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgard and Dave Bautista. Dune: Part Two released earlier this year. A sequel based on Herbert's 1969 novel Dune Messiah is in development. A prequel series is also in production, titled Dune: Prophecy, which will soon premiere on HBO Max (JioCinema in India), and also stars acclaimed Indian actor Tabu.
During the interview, Ortega also spoke about her experiences shooting for Netflix’s Wednesday with legendary director Tim Burton who has also worked on Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, the sequel to his 1988 film Beetlejuice. “On Wednesday we were just trying to get to know each other a bit. On Beetlejuice... he seemed a lot more playful and I think it actually helped our relationship a lot...it was just a very joyous, happy shoot.”
She was also all praise for Michael Keaton and Catherine O’Hara. “Winona was so welcoming. I feel really, really lucky to have been able to create such a bond with her on set. I have been such a fan of Michael Keaton for such a long time that I think actually seeing him in person I went inside myself because I weirdly got shy.”
Apart from the above mentioned names, the film also stars Monica Bellucci, Justin Theroux, Arthur Conti, Burn Gorman, and Filipe Cates. The original Beetlejuice also starred Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Jeffrey Jordan, and Catherine O'Hara, among others. The film will have its world premiere out-of-competition on August 28 at the Lido's Palazzo del Cinema and will debut in Indian theatres on September 6.