Jenna Ortega has admitted she initially turned down her biggest role as Wednesday Addams and has been surprised at the show's success.
The actress, 20, took on the iconic role in Tim Burton 's latest series Wednesday, which was a huge success for streaming site Netflix.
The programme debuted at number one on the streaming site across 83 countries and has become the second most watched English-language show in Netflix history.
Yet for Ortega, she was unsure about taking on another TV series having appeared in the lead role on the Disney Channel’s Stuck in the Middle from the age of 13.
"I got the email, passed on it,” she told The Sunday Times about her Wednesday role.
“I had done so much TV in my life, all I’ve ever wanted to do is film.
"The only reason I went back is because Tim [Burton, director and executive producer of Wednesday] is such a legend, and we just happened to get along very well. But even then I said, ‘Ah, no — I think I’m OK,’ a couple [more] times.”
Jenna has appeared on Netflix thriller series You and family film Yes Day. She took a turn to the horror genre and has since stared in Scream and X.
The actress received nominations at the Golden Globe Awards and Screen Actors Guild Awards for her role as the death-obsessed Addams child.
She says she was scared to take on Wednesday in case it held her back from being cast in films, something she really wanted to do.
But, the role turned out to be a huge success and catapulted her already successful acting career.
She said: “I didn’t expect the reaction."
Jenna would talk to other Wednesday cast about what they thought would happen with the show during filming but they didn't think too much.
Adding: "So I thought it wasn’t going to be watched. That it will be a nice little gem that someone finds, but … ”
She is understood to have nabbed the role of the daughter of Lydia Deetz (played by Winona Ryder in the original).
