Jenna Ortega recalls lost teenage role while promoting ‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’

Jenna Ortega recalled one iconic role she auditioned for and didn’t get it when she was 15-years-old, while promoting her much-awaited movie, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.

The actress, 21-year-old now, who portrays the character of Astrid Deetz, the daughter of Winona Ryder's Lydia Deetz in the sequel, recalled the audition during an interview with BuzzFeed Celeb, in response to when asked about one role that would surprise fans when they learn she auditioned for.

“I think I auditioned for Dune when I was about 15,” the actress revealed about auditioning for a role in Denis Villeneuve's Dune movies, adding how discreet the audition process was.

“I remember just being a big fan of that film and the franchise and everything like that and being really excited for that interview because Denis is one of my favourite filmmakers,” she added.

“I think it was Chani, I think it was Zendaya’s, but they weren’t saying that, everything was very secret,” Ortega shared the exact role she had eyes on.

Zendaya was first revealed as Chani in January 2019, and despite appearing in the 2021 film Dune for a limited screen-time, she played a significant part in the 2024 follow-up Dune: Part Two.