Jenna Ortega Reveals She Would Go All Day Without Food or Water as a Child Actor to Avoid Being ‘In the Way’

Jenna Ortega is reflecting on the intense pressure she placed on herself while working as a child actor — including times when she says she would spend an entire day on set without eating or even asking for water because she was determined not to inconvenience anyone around her.

The Wednesday star opened up about her childhood career during a recent interview with Esquire, revealing that her determination to behave perfectly on set sometimes came at the expense of her own basic needs.

Looking back, Ortega said she remembers being extremely disciplined and careful as a young performer.

“I really had it going for me as a child ‘cause I can’t think of one mistake I made,” Ortega said.

She then questioned her own observation.

“Is that a terrible thing to say?” she continued. “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.”

For Ortega, that “game face” meant much more than remembering her lines and being prepared to perform.

It also meant trying to make herself as undemanding as possible.

Ortega Says She Wouldn’t Even Ask for Water

The actress explained that while working as a child, she became so concerned about not disrupting production that she avoided asking people on set for anything.

“I wasn’t asking for a sip of water,” Ortega recalled.

She said there were days when she would simply continue working without eating or drinking.

“I would go all day without eating, drinking, whatever, because I wanted so badly to not be in the way of anybody.”

Years later, Ortega now recognizes that the behavior may have been less admirable than she believed at the time.

“Maybe that was my mistake, was not actually looking after myself,” she said.

The admission offers a revealing look at the mindset Ortega developed while entering the entertainment industry at a very young age.

Rather than viewing herself as a child who needed support on a professional set, she appears to have approached the experience with a strong sense that she needed to prove she belonged there.

She Wanted to Act From the Age of 7

Ortega’s determination to build an acting career began long before she became known internationally.

She told Esquire that she first announced her desire to become an actress when she was only 7 years old.

Her parents initially did not take the declaration seriously.

“I was 7 years old when I said I wanted to do this,” Ortega said. “My parents laughed at me when I told them that I wanted to do it.”

Instead of discouraging her, however, their reaction seems to have strengthened her resolve.

Ortega described that moment as an important source of the motivation that drove her throughout childhood.

“And then that was kind of the root of everything,” she said. “The motivation.”

She continued pursuing acting without seriously reconsidering the decision.

“And I never really stopped, because I’m very stubborn,” Ortega added. “And then I never questioned it.”

That persistence eventually led Ortega from childhood television roles to one of the most recognizable young stars working in Hollywood today.

Her Breakthrough Came Before Wednesday

Long before audiences knew Ortega as Wednesday Addams, she had already spent years working in television.

One of her most significant early opportunities came when she was cast as the lead of the Disney Channel comedy Stuck in the Middle.

The series debuted in 2016, when Ortega was only 13 years old.

Playing Harley Diaz gave her one of her first major starring roles and introduced her to a generation of younger viewers.

But Stuck in the Middle was only part of a much broader childhood acting career.

Ortega also appeared in Richie Rich and had a recurring role in Jane the Virgin.

She later provided voice work for Elena of Avalor and appeared in the psychological thriller series You.

Those projects required Ortega to move between children’s television, comedy, drama and eventually darker material while she was still growing up inside the industry.

Her comments to Esquire suggest that behind those performances was a child who believed professionalism meant asking for as little as possible.

Her View of Child-Star Stereotypes

During the interview, Ortega was also asked about the stereotypes and stigmas surrounding people who become famous as children.

Her response was characteristically dry.

“Is it wrong to say that a lot of them are true?” she joked.

“And do with that what you will.”

The comment hints at Ortega’s complicated understanding of what it means to grow up working in entertainment.

Child stars have long faced intense public scrutiny, unusual professional demands and expectations that can be difficult to navigate while still developing personally.

Ortega did not suggest that every stereotype applied to her own experience, but her revelation about refusing food and water illustrates one of the more subtle pressures she placed on herself.

There was no suggestion in her comments that anyone explicitly ordered her not to eat or drink.

Instead, Ortega described the behavior as something she chose because she desperately wanted to avoid becoming an inconvenience.

That distinction makes her reflection particularly striking.

The pressure did not necessarily have to be spoken aloud for her to feel it.

Success Came With an Extremely Disciplined Mindset

Ortega’s comments also reveal how strongly she connected gratitude with performance.

As a young actress, she understood every opportunity as something valuable that could potentially disappear.

That appears to have encouraged her to remain constantly prepared and controlled.

She wanted adults working around her to see someone reliable rather than a child who needed attention.

At the time, Ortega seemingly considered that mindset one of her strengths.

Today, she has a different perspective.

Her observation that failing to care for herself may have been her real “mistake” suggests that she now recognizes a distinction between being professional and ignoring her own physical needs.

It is a lesson that came after years of growing up in front of cameras.

From Child Actor to Global Star

Ortega’s career eventually expanded far beyond her Disney beginnings.

Her role as Wednesday Addams transformed her into an international star and made her one of the most recognizable performers of her generation.

But the person audiences now see leading major productions is the result of a career that began when she was still in elementary school.

Her latest reflections make clear that the journey involved more than simply memorizing scripts and attending auditions.

It also involved navigating expectations, responsibility and her own determination to succeed at an age when most children are still figuring out what they want to become.

Ortega says she never questioned the path once she started.

What she does question now is how she treated herself along the way.

As a child, going an entire day without food or water may have felt to her like proof that she was disciplined, appreciative and easy to work with.

Looking back as an adult, she sees something different.

The girl who was so determined not to get “in the way of anybody” may have forgotten that she was allowed to take care of herself, too.