If anybody called someone the “Next Big Thing” in Hollywood, most individuals would experience some pressure to conform to those lofty ambitions. However, Jenna Ortega, who was dubbed as such by The Hollywood Reporter earlier in the year, appears unconcerned. In fact, as she considers her future jobs, she most looks forward to adding to other people’s ideas and craftsmanship. Ortega has already accomplished several key career benchmarks since she began performing as a child. As a teenager, she had her own Disney Channel show, was dubbed the very first Latina Disney character, and starred with Penn Badgley in the famous Netflix drama You.
From the looks of it, the young actress’ professional highs are only the start. Jenna Ortega has won numerous honors for her performances. Here are her best performances, ranked.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
8 Jane The Virgin (2014-2019)
Warner Bros. Television Distribution/ CBS Television Distribution
When people contemplate that Jane the Virgin has lasted 100 episodes, they would assume that somebody who featured in 30 of them wouldn’t have played a significant role. Jenna Ortega’s appearance in the popular soap opera is, nonetheless, crucial to the plot.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
Ortega played the younger version of Jane throughout the show. In critical flashback scenes, she performed more than almost any other artist who stepped into the role over time. During its run, Jane the Virgin received numerous honors and established Gina Rodriguez as a household celebrity.
RELATED: Charmed Prequel Series Happening with Jane the Virgin Creator
7 You (2018-2021)
Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Jenna Ortega is probably most known for her performance on You. The sitcom debuted on Lifetime but languished there before finding new life on Netflix, where it became one of the digital giant’s most famous shows and received further seasons.
In season 2, Ortega appeared as Ellie Alves, Joe’s violent serial murderer protagonist’s neighbor. Together with Ellie’s sister Delilah, they create an intriguing friendship. Season 2 had the strongest ratings of the series and helped propel Ortega to stardom.
6 Insidious Chapter 2 (2013)
FilmDistrict
One of the most remarkable horror franchises is the Insidious series. Ortega had a small role in Blumhouse’s Insidious: Chapter 2, a 2013 sequel to the fantastically creepy original film. Ortega makes an appearance as Annie, a small girl, at the finale of the movie. Annie was the only one who could see Lin Shaye’s Elise Rainier’s spirit form during a visit by paranormal explorers to her family’s house.
5 The Fallout (2021)
New Line Cinema
The Fallout is the film to see if visitors want to get a true sense of Jenna Ortega’s acting abilities. It aired at South by SXSW in 2021 before premiering on HBOMax in early 2022, and the performances and debutant writer/director Megan Park received high praise.
The story follows two teenage girls who create a terrible relationship while hiding in the restroom after a school massacre. As a coming-of-age film, The Fallout spotlights the trauma of school shootings. Maddie Ziegler and Ortega both provide deep performances, and the film is wonderful, but the melancholy nature of it all makes it difficult to see numerous times.
4 Stuck In The Middle (2016-2018)
International Donut Fund Productions / Horizon Productions
This lively comedy follows the Helter-Skelter tempo of its fresh-faced central protagonist, reflecting the hectic goings-on in the enormous Diaz household. Ortega’s role is an engineer who utilizes her inventions to get by as the middle kid in a household of seven children. As she navigates the everyday shenanigans that accompany someone being a part of a large family, her unnoticed position appears to be both a grace and a pain. Ortega is a natural in this part, pressing her position as a long-suffering middle child while finding humor in the various misfortunes that afflict her attempts to shine.
RELATED: The Babysitter: Killer Queen Trailer Brings Bella Thorne Back for More on Netflix
3 The Babysitter: Killer Queen (2020)
Netflix
Ortega debuted in the horror genre as a supporting character in Insidious 2 before starring as Phoebe in Netflix’s The Babysitter: Killer Queen. It was her first main role in the Netflix supernatural thriller, which helped her get widespread recognition and exposure. Phoebe, a Goth high school student who strives to escape the fury of the protagonists’ demonic nanny, and the other cultists, demonstrated Ortega’s acting, versatility and talent to perform in many genres. The Babysitter: Killer Queen star says that shooting the ‘magical’ houseboat scene was so electric.
Despite the bad reviews, fans appreciated Ortega’s inclusion in the film and are eager to see her again in future horror films. While Jenna Ortega’s performance as Phoebe was her debut as a slasher scream queen, it would not be her last.
2 X (2022)
A24
Jenna Ortega’s most recent horror film is also among her finest, while Ti West’s sensual thriller X pays homage to his favorite slasher genre. Lorraine Day, played by Ortega in X, is a young woman who accompanies the trip to help her boyfriend RJ with shooting a film. Jenna Ortega is proving to be an outstanding scream queen in this picture, following her turn in Scream earlier this year. Lorraine has a childish innocence about her, but this is still a major step forward for Ortega. It’s clear that the star is on the correct track after watching her career develop and expand in the direction it has since her Disney princess days.
1 Scream (2022)
Paramount Pictures
Jenna’s next major horror film would be Scream, which broke box office records and spawned a sequel. Scream has a lot of movies in the horror franchise, and Jenna was a part of the most recent film in 2022. Ortega stunned with her acting talents in the part of Tara Carpenter, the sister of the lead, Sam. Tara is repeatedly subjected to great physical pain in the movie, and those that have seen it, know, and Ortega sells that pain like crazy. Jenna Ortega appears to have grasped the thrill and pressure that come with appearing in Scream’s opening sequences, since her acting in the new film has received widespread praise from reviewers and fans alike.
