Jenna Ortega Reveals a Lot of ‘The Fallout’ Was Improvised

Jenna Ortega is getting a ton of well-deserved recognition for her most recent role as Wednesday Addams. However, the actor gave plenty of other memorable performances prior to nabbing the titular role in the Netflix series. One of those performances was undoubtedly her portrayal of Vada Cavell in The Fallout.

What is ‘The Fallout’ about?

The Fallout follows Vada, a teenager who experiences tragedy whilst at school. The film explores how Ortega’s character handles the emotions that she and others experience in the wake of trauma. The movie also explores how unexpected friendships are able to form under unusual circumstances. This is mostly explored through Vada’s connection with dancer and social media influencer, Mia Reed, who is portrayed by Maddie Ziegler.

Jenna Ortega explains why the film is one of her greatest professional achievements

Though the subject matter in The Fallout is often heavy, Ortega thoroughly enjoyed working on the film. In fact, while speaking to Deadline for their 20 Questions: On Deadline podcast, the Scream actor called the movie one of her proudest working achievements to date.

“I feel like The Fallout is a really important one to me,” Ortega revealed. “I haven’t seen the film, actually, but it really meant a lot to me. It was the first time that I was leading a film, and it’s about a very timely matter. It’s a really sensitive topic, and I wanted to do it justice. And you never really know with something like that because it’s not really your story to tell.”

Large portions of ‘The Fallout were improvised

Ortega had a lot of respect for the story she was telling. However, she also appreciated how much freedom The Fallout’s director, Megan Park gave her. While Park penned the script, she also allowed her actors to really live in the scene, add their own flair, and even improvise certain things. “One of the greatest actor-director experiences that I’ve ever had,” Ortega explained about working on The Fallout. “Megan Park let me do whatever, and a lot of the film was improvised, which was really, really, encouraging and interesting for me.”

Ortega met one of her closest friends, Maddie Ziegler while working on ‘The Fallout’

Another benefit to working on the film was the close bond that Ortega developed with Ziegler. The pair, who both grew up in the spotlight, knew of each other in passing. But the film really allowed them to form a true bond. “I also met one of my greatest friends, Maddie Ziegler,” Ortega shared. “And I remember us both going into it nervous, and I feel like we came out of the film much stronger and much closer.”

The actor has great respect for her character, Vada Cavell

Clearly, The Fallout was an excellent experience for Ortega. She certainly gave a great performance in the film, and she still thinks about Vada frequently. “I just miss that character,” Ortega admitted. “I think she’s someone that I try to carry with me as much as possible. I wish I was a little bit more like her at times.”