Jenna Ortega smiles at me from somewhere in Romania, her effortless dark waves filling my Zoom screen.

As we discuss her film The Fallout, which is now streaming on HBO following its award-winning premiere at South by Southwest in 2021, the Latina actress is gracious, thoughtful, and poised.

Though she’s been a working actor since before she hit the double digits, appearing in films as varied as Iron Man 3, You, and Insidious: Chapter 2, the California-native is poised to be Hollywood’s next megastar.

She recently nabbed the titular role in Tim Burton’s Wednesday series (which she’s currently filming) about the famously deadpan Addams daughter, alongside a legendary cast including Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia.