Jenna Ortega’s recent appearance in Esquire’s “How I Got Here” series has set alarm bells ringing on social media. The actress, who commands a huge fan following thanks to her breakout series ‘Wednesday’, had many taking to their handles to express conern about her health after she debuted a rather frail physique.The Wednesday star, who has built a major career since beginning as a child actor, appeared in Esquire’s Mavericks of Hollywood feature. While the interview focused largely on Ortega’s journey through the entertainment industry, netizens could not help but notice that the actress looked noticeably slimmer than she has in the past.
Jenna Ortega’s ‘Then and Now’ pics alarm fans
The clip had fans taking to their handles to post ‘Then and Now’ photos of the star to share her drastic transformation in just one year. Others expressed their concern about Ortega’s wellbeing, while others criticised the ‘new trend’ in Hollywood that has some leading ladies stepping up with ‘thinner’ physiques and frail looks.One social media user wrote, “ok im not a fan of how people feel comfortable talking about woman’s bodies but genuinely what is happening in Hollywood is wild to me.”Another argued that the online reaction itself highlighted the problems surrounding celebrity culture, writing, “Jenna Ortega is trending today, and I think the reaction says almost as much about social media as it does about her. People saw recent footage of her and immediately started commenting on how thin she looks.”
Jenna Ortega recalls going without food and water as a child actor
Concern about her health grew with the actress, speaking candidly about the pressures she experienced as a child performer. During Esquire’s interview, Ortega was asked about a rookie mistake she made on one of her first sets.“I really had it going for me as a child ’cause I can’t think of one mistake I made,” Ortega said. “Is that a terrible thing to say? I feel like I make mistakes now all the time, but as a child, I was so grateful and so excited to be there that my game face was on.”She then revealed, “I wasn’t asking for a sip of water. I would go all day without eating, drinking, whatever, because I wanted so badly to not be in the way of anybody.”“Maybe that was my mistake, was not actually looking after myself,” Ortega added.
Ariana Grande comparisons resurface
The conversation has also drawn comparisons between Ortega and Ariana Grande, who has faced intense public scrutiny about her appearance in recent years. Some social media users questioned whether Hollywood was once again normalising extremely thin physiques, with one post asking, “why are we normalising extreme thinness ???”Another user wrote, “How and why is no one else alarmed by how thin she is? Can we stop pretending that this is normal and healthy and that she’s ‘always been this thin’? Because she hasn’t, it’s deeply concerning and I’m very scared for her wellbeing.”Grande has previously spoken about the impact of strangers commenting on her body and making assumptions about her health based solely on her appearance. Her experience has become part of a broader conversation about the limits of celebrity body commentary and the tendency to interpret physical appearance as an indication of someone’s wellbeing.Now, Ortega has found herself at the centre of a similar discussion with fans saying, “What the hell is happening to women celebrities right now” while another added, “Whatever is happening has to be stopped immediately!” Still another said, “Everyone is genuinely getting so skinny it’s worrying :(“
Hollywood’s ‘extreme thinness’ trend
Other social media posts have also placed Ortega alongside actresses including Lily Collins, Emma Stone, Alexa Demie, Demi Moore, Michelle Yeoh and Cynthia Erivo, Olivia Wilde, Nicole Kidman, Charlise Theron, Kelly Osbourne with users discussing what they perceive as changes in the actresses’ physiques.However, such comparisons are based on public photographs and not based on stars’ personal accounts.
Jenna Ortega’s film career
Ortega, remains one of Hollywood’s most prominent young actors. She rose to international fame as Wednesday Addams in Netflix’s ‘Wednesday’, a role that turned her into a global star and earned her critical acclaim.The series was renewed for a third season in July 2025, even before its second season premiered.Beyond Wednesday, Ortega has appeared in films including Scream, Scream VI, X, The Fallout and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. She is next set to star in Taika Waititi’s Klara and the Sun, an adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s bestselling 2021 novel. Ortega will play Klara, an artificial friend whose perspective forms the centre of the story.
