Jenna Ortega has skyrocketed to stardom. Soon, you’ll catch her as Winona Ryder’s on-screen daughter, Astrid, in the highly-anticipated Beetlejuice sequel, set to hit the big screen next weekend. But a few years back, she was tirelessly auditioning for roles. According to her, she could have brought Chani to life in the Dune Saga.
In a recent interview with BuzzFeed, Jenna Ortega was asked about a role for which people would be surprised to learn she auditioned. She admitted that she’s pretty sure she auditioned for the role of Chani in Dune, which ultimately went to Zendaya.
“I auditioned for Dune when I was about 15,” Ortega says in the video. “I remember just being a big fan of that film, franchise, and everything like that.” Ortega added that she was “really excited” for the audition since Villeneuve is “one of [her] favorite filmmakers.”
While Ortega is pretty sure the role she went for is Zendaya’s, she can’t quite put her finger on it. “I think it was Chani, I think it was Zendaya’s. But they weren’t saying that. Everything was very secret,” she admits.
Elsewhere in the interview, Ortega, who’s currently hyping up Beetlejuice, spilled the beans on what it’s like to work with Tim Burton in the highly-anticipated sequel and Netflix’s Wednesday Season 2.
“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,” Ortega said of the famed director. “It was just a very joyous, happy shoot.”
You can watch Jenna Ortega’s full puppy interview below: