Updated

Updated · BuzzFeed · Aug 12

Jenna Ortega Says Child Acting Changed Her at 23 as 6-Hour Audition Trips Shaped Her

Updated

Updated · BuzzFeed · Aug 12

Jenna Ortega Says Child Acting Changed Her at 23 as 6-Hour Audition Trips Shaped Her

Q: Despite strict child labor laws, how did a young Jenna Ortega secretly starve herself on professional Hollywood sets?

She likely did not “secretly” starve herself in the sense of evading the law; by her own account, she voluntarily stayed silent about basic needs. Ortega said she was so determined not to inconvenience anyone that she would avoid asking for water, food or breaks and could go all day without eating or drinking. That can happen even on regulated sets because child-labor rules mainly require productions to provide meals, rest periods, supervision and a safe environment; they do not guarantee that a child will speak up, eat or drink if she is trying hard to appear easy to work with. California and other production hubs require studio teachers or child-welfare personnel to monitor minors’ hours, schooling, breaks and general welfare, but those systems still depend in part on adults noticing problems and on children feeling safe enough to voice discomfort. The broader issue Ortega’s remarks highlight is not necessarily that Hollywood sets had no protections, but that child performers can internalize intense pressure to be compliant, grateful and professional. Former child actors have often described perfectionism, anxiety and fear of being seen as difficult. In that environment, a young actor may skip food or water without openly refusing care, simply by never asking and by masking distress. So the gap was likely psychological and supervisory, not legal: the protections may have existed on paper, but Ortega says her own mindset kept her from using them.

3 articles · Updated · BuzzFeed · Aug 12

At 23, Jenna Ortega said child acting "completely changed" how she speaks, thinks and handles interactions, calling work as a minor "strange" because children are placed in adult workplaces.
In a 2024 New York Times interview, Ortega said she can instantly recognize other former child actors because they share a specific way of moving through life shaped by early work.
Ages 9 and 13 marked key starts in that career arc — from Iron Man 3 to Disney's Stuck in the Middle — after years of frequent auditions that required six- to seven-hour round trips from Coachella Valley to Los Angeles.
Her comments add to recent disclosures about the strain of child stardom, after Ortega said she once went all day without eating or drinking on set to avoid seeming like a nuisance.