THE RUNDOWN:

Jenna Ortega and Emma Myers are both stars of the hit Netflix series Wednesday, which will be returning to small screens on September 3
The pair play best friends on screen, but in real life, they’re just as close, having formed an intense bond on set
Jenna Ortega has been performing since she was six years old, and has shared that she feels particularly protective of Myers as they navigate fame together

In the hit Netflix series Wednesday, Jenna Ortega, 22, and Emma Myers, 23, are on-screen best friends as Nevermore students Wednesday Addams and Enid Sinclair—but according to reports, the two also share a close off-screen friendship.

On Wednesday, Jenna Ortega plays Wednesday Addams, a sharp-tongued, self-appointed sleuth who finds herself roomed with Enid, a bubbly werewolf. While they don’t click at first, the two eventually develop a deep friendship that forms the emotional core of the Netflix series, as they join forces to solve supernatural mysteries.

With Part 2 of Wednesday Season 2 on its way, and the pair currently touring Sydney, we’ve taken a closer look at the duo’s bond—from their “awkward” first meeting to the evolution of their off-screen connection.

Image: Getty

An “Awkward” First Meeting On Zoom

It’s a truth universally acknowledged that Zoom work calls are awkward—and apparently, this applies even to members of a hit Netflix series. Jenna Ortega and Emma Myers first met over Zoom during a chemistry read, and as they later revealed in an interview, the experience was “awkward.”

“We met on Zoom for my chemistry read, but we didn’t actually talk at all during that because it was just a quick in-and-out chemistry read,” Myers revealed in a Netflix Tudum interview. The meeting didn’t go particularly well, with Myers admitting she burst into tears afterwards after accidentally cutting Ortega off. “I was like, ‘Well, I just ruined that,’” she recalled.

In the same interview, Ortega revealed she had taken too long a pause between lines, joking, “I was just trying to make you uncomfortable.”

Their next meeting went a little better. “You did give a hug and then we both awkwardly walked,” recalled Myers. Ortega said she was distracted because she had “terrible braids in,” and Emma remembered being dressed in something “really awkward” because she was heading to the gym.

Despite the wardrobe mishaps, Ortega and Myers developed a strong bond as co-stars after being, as Ortega put it, “locked [in] random foreign countries together for eight months.” (Wednesday was filmed in Romania and other locations across Europe.)

In an interview with Seventeen, Jenna shared that she “feels really lucky” to have gotten to know and “love” Myers over the years. “Emma, as a friend, is incredibly generous, patient and charming,” she said. Emma echoed the sentiment: “I instantly felt really close to her because she’s so cool, so open, and such a lovely person.”

Image: Courtesy of Netflix

Why Jenna Ortega Feels ‘Protective’ Of Emma Myers

Both Ortega’s and Myers’ stars exploded when Wednesday made its record-breaking debut. While Ortega, who began performing at a young age, has spoken about the pressures of fame, she’s said she feels particularly protective over Emma.

Speaking on the Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard podcast in 2023, Ortega said, “I don’t think I’ve ever been so protective of somebody. I think about her all the time. I only ever want to make sure she’s OK and good.”

“We get along so naturally,” she continued. “I’m so easily comfortable around her. I used to wake up every day in Romania and before I was even conscious, I would do voice memos and I would sing her a new song every day, talking about how beautiful and wonderful she was and how she was gonna have the best day ever. I’ve never had that desire or urge for anybody else.”

Ortega also revealed that Myers and fellow co-stars Percy Hynes White (Xavier Thorpe) and Georgie Farmer (Ajax Petropolus) are “kind of my only friends at the moment.”

Image: Netflix

How Similar Are Jenna Ortega and Emma Myers’ Dynamics to Wednesday and Enid’s?

Emma Myers has said that Jenna is much closer in personality to Wednesday than she is to her own character, Enid. “Jenna is very much like Wednesday,” she told Variety in January. “But because I’m not much like Enid, we don’t have the same dynamic in real life—me poking at her constantly, her brushing me off. We get along so well, I love Jenna. She’s one of my closest friends. I think we have a different dynamic off-screen, but I still don’t think it’s any less important or deep or beautiful than Enid and Wednesday’s.”

In an interview with Netflix Tudum, Myers elaborated on what makes their connection special. “I think their friendship works because of their differences. Sometimes you need someone to keep you tethered to the ground. Enid and Wednesday are both quite ambitious, driven, and slightly psychotic characters, so it’s easy to get stuck on a certain path or stuck on a certain train. But I think that we respect each other, and how strong the other is, and how sure of ourselves we both are in different ways. It’s a pretty rare quality to find in people. So the fact that we’re these two self-assured individuals who have found each other is… well, I think we recognise how unique that is.”

Jenna Ortega As Producer On Wednesday

Emma has shared that Jenna is even more supportive now that she’s stepped into a producer role for the upcoming season. “[She’s] producing this next season, so she had a lot more creative input and was always telling me, ‘If there’s something you don’t like or something you’re not comfortable with, let me know and I’ll be your person.’”

A Fan-Favourite Duo With More To Come?

With their real-life bond drawing as much attention as their on-screen chemistry, Ortega and Myers have become one of pop culture’s most beloved duos. Their relationship continues to fuel speculation among fans—many of whom hope to see the characters’ friendship evolve in future seasons or even spin-offs. Or, even a different project. Ortega said in an interview with Tudum that she’d like to film a movie with Myers. “It would be nice—a different flow of things. I would probably get to see you more often. We’re done with the mystery… Too much mystery, too much of the thriller genre in our lives.” “I’d love to do something serious with you,” Myers responded.

We’ll watch this space. Meanwhile, as Wednesday returns with new mysteries, Jenna and Emma’s connection, both on and off screen, remains the series’ most emotionally resonant thread.