Jenna Ortega’s appearance at the Actor Awards did not go unnoticed as she stepped into the venue with a strong nomination.
Formerly known as the SAG Awards, the event brought some of Hollywood’s biggest names together at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.
However, as Ortega walked down the red carpet, some fans shifted the focus from her craft to her face. "So she really changed her cheeks?" one commented.
Highlights
- Jenna Ortega sparked conversation about her appearance after hitting the red carpet at the 2026 Actor Awards.
- The 'Wednesday' star donned a Christian Cowan slip dress with Jimmy Choo shoes.
- The actress became emotional when she lost the Outstanding Female Comedy Actor award to her late co-star, Catherine O'Hara.
Image credits: Getty/Frazer Harrison
Jenna was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series for her role as Wednesday Addams in Netflix’s Wednesday.
For the awards show, the young talent wore a lacy Christian Cowan slip dress, which she accessorized with stockings and Jimmy Choo shoes.
As Jenna plays a schoolgirl in the hit show, many fans are often surprised when they see her dressing and carrying herself like a 23-year-old on the red carpet.
Image credits: X/JennaOrtegaUpds
“Yes, I have qualities similar to Wednesday, but I’m not [her],” she told The Hollywood Reporter. “I hate assumptions, and a big part of this job is that people are going to make assumptions about you.”
Some netizens have attributed the differences between Wednesday Jenna and real-life Jenna not to her personality or bold style, but to cosmetic procedures the actress is rumored to have undergone in recent months.
Image credits: Getty/Amy Sussman
Specifically, the California-born star is believed to have had buccal fat removal, also known as cheek reduction surgery. Jenna has never publicly commented on the speculation surrounding the procedure.
“Wow, what happened to her face? She looks so different now!” one fan noted.
“The Hollywood face sucks! They are finishing them,” someone else shared.
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Image credits: Getty/Frazer Harrison
“Why do they all have alien faces?” a third said referring to the procedure, which removes the fat between the cheekbones and jaw bones, giving the face a more hollowed look.
"So she really changed her cheeks? What the hell! She’s ruined her look. Now she just looks like the rest of them,” claimed a fourth.
Image credits: ColeEW8
Meanwhile, many others praised the star, writing, “Idk people say this and that but I like her mysterious gothic vibe.”
“Jenna looks stunning,” expressed an additional fan.
Some argued that Jenna has always had hollowed-out cheeks and did not undergo surgery to alter her face.
Image credits: Getty/Daniele Venturelli
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At the Actor Awards, the 23-year-old lost to Catherine O'Hara in a posthumous award, which was accepted by her Studio co-star, Seth Rogen.
Jenna was seen getting emotional as Catherine was announced as the winner, as the two had starred together in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. Catherine passed away at age 71 in January after a battle with colon cancer.
At the ceremony on Sunday (March 1), Jenna also presented the award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series, which went to Seth Rogen.
In an interview with Tim Burton, the Scream actress revealed that she sometimes feels “misunderstood” and that her name “doesn’t belong” to her, because people feel “entitled” to know everything about her life or expect her to be like the character they see on TV.
Jenna lost the award to co-star and The Studio actress Catherine O'Hara, who passed away in January
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“People feel entitled to those bits and pieces of your life where if they were put under the same microscope, they wouldn’t feel nearly as comfortable,” she stated.
Jenna also said she sometimes gets “scared” when fans recognize her and shout her name in public, or when she’s approached by grown men.
“Also, sometimes people shout vile things. Like, you don’t stop for somebody because you’re going to be late for something and they’re calling you a ‘c*nt wh*re’ in front of your mother. It’s horrific.”
Image credits: Warner Bros. Pictures
While she may not share Wednesday’s personality, Jenna revealed that her famous character has shaped—or given a rebirth to—her own gothic style, which has turned her into a style icon.
“I’ve always been into dark things or been fascinated by them, but I was a Disney kid, and the whole thing is being bubbly and kind and overly sweet,” she said.
From 2016 to 2018, the actress starred in the Disney Channel show Stuck in the Middle.
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Jenna, dubbed “Gen Z's scream queen," said experimenting with fashion is a big part of growing up, but women in the spotlight face more judgment than men for doing so.
“Girls, if they don’t stay as this perfect image of how they were first introduced to you, then it’s ‘Ah, something’s wrong. She’s changed. She sold her soul.’
“But you’re watching these women at the most pivotal times in their lives; they’re experimenting because that’s what you do.”
The 23-year-old has credited her Wednesday character for influencing her gothic style
Image credits: jennasfiles
Image credits: Getty/Valerie Terranova
According to Deadline, Jenna is set to appear in Klara and the Sun, a dystopian film directed by Taika Waititi.
Based on Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel, the story follows Klara (played by Jenna), a solar-powered Artificial Friend designed to prevent loneliness. Klara is purchased by a mother (Amy Adams) and a teenager named Josie (Mia Tharia), who suffers from a mysterious illness.
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