After Jenna Ortega’s Recent Marvel Comments, I’m Convinced Her 1 MCU Appearance Is Even More Of A Wasted Opportunity

Jenna Ortega appeared in the MCU once, and her recent comments convinced me that Marvel wasted a huge opportunity. Ortega’s star power has swelled since she starred as the titular Wednesday in the widely acclaimed Netflix show and went on to be a horror genre mainstay. Now, Ortega is among many Hollywood A-listers who could be perfectly cast in one of the MCU’s many upcoming projects, though whether this is the direction she wants to head in remains to be seen.

If she does, this would make Jenna Ortega one of a growing number of actors who have played multiple roles in the MCU. Ortega, now 22 years old, appeared in the MCU over a decade ago in a role so minor it borders on inconsequential. My hope is that this means Ortega will be open to reappearing in a future MCU installment, whether as the same character or as an entirely new one – though her recent comments on the matter don’t paint a positive picture.

Jenna Ortega Recently Addressed Her Brief MCU Appearance In Iron Man 3

Ortega Was Responding To A Question About A Possible Future MCU Role

Jenna Ortega appears in Iron Man 3 as Vice President Rodriguez’s daughter. She is revealed to be the core motivation behind Rodriguez’s decision to aid Aldrich Killian and cover up the clandestine operations of the so-called “Mandarin” as she has one leg, a state of affairs that Killian’s Extremis technology could help with. Ortega’s character is unnamed and has no speaking lines, appearing for just a few short seconds. Ortega recently reflected on this exceptionally minor role with Entertainment Tonight in a snippet posted to YouTube, stating when asked about joining the “Marvel Universe“:

“I did it once. It was one of the first jobs I ever did. They took all my lines out. I’m in ‘Iron Man 3’ for a quick second. I take up the frame, I have one leg and I’m the vice president’s daughter.”

Ortega reveals that her role was initially larger, with the vice president’s daughter being afforded both a name and lines before Marvel Studios opted to remove both. Paul Rudd, who is co-starring with Ortega in their upcoming movie Death of a Unicorn, then optimistically asserts that Marvel can easily re-write her back into the MCU narrative, to which Ortega replies “I count that, and I move on,” suggesting she is uninterested. This compounds the notion that the MCU wasted its opportunity with a proven talent, and I’m finding it difficult to overlook the fumble.

Marvel Cutting Jenna Ortega’s Lines In Iron Man 3 Was A Waste

Jenna Ortega Could Have Been A Stellar Addition To The MCU

With Jenna Ortega being one of the foremost actresses in Hollywood right now, Marvel’s decision is baffling. Twelve years later, Ortega is now a proven talent, with acclaimed roles like Wednesday and Tara from the Scream franchise being prime examples. I therefore find it hard to believe that Marvel removed her lines due to them being below par, but it now feels like the studio missed a huge opportunity.

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Compounding this issue is the fact that Ortega’s character, who is inherently adjacent to political power in the MCU, has suffered a similar fate to many of the MCU’s presidents. After appearing once, it remains patently unlikely that she will reprise the role, particularly as Rodriguez had a minor role to begin with and has since been arrested and presumably imprisoned. Instead, I hope that Ortega will reconsider her apparent stance on returning to the MCU and that Marvel Studios wields the implications of the Multiverse Saga to bring her back into the fold.

Jenna Ortega Could Portray Many New Characters

Short out Jenna Ortega outright stating that she does not want to join the MCU, I’m hopeful that the right offer could sway her – particularly as the MCU begins to shift focus to a younger cohort of heroes. This should be an entirely new character who plays a far more pivotal role than the vice president’s daughter. Thankfully, there is a litany of worthy candidates that the MCU may be about to introduce.

Jenna Ortega owns the gothic aesthetic, and there are plenty of Marvel characters yet to be introduced to the MCU that fit this bill perfectly. For instance, should Marvel decide to reintroduce the popular Werewolf by Night in a future installment, Ortega would be a great fit for his niece, Nina Price (AKA Vampire by Night). Alternatively, Ortega could portray a young White Tiger. As another actress was recently introduced in Daredevil: Born Again as White Tiger’s presumed successor, Angela Del Toro, Ortega could instead play his younger sister, Ava Ayala.

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With Sony’s Spider-Man Universe now presumably defunct, there may be more scope to introduce Aña Corazón’s Spider-Girl into the MCU, teeing up the successor that Tom Holland hopes to pass the torch to at age 30. Then again, with Ortega’s star power where it is right now, larger roles like the X-Men’s Rogue or Kitty Pryde are also viable candidates. This all depends, of course, on whether Ortega is won over by the character, so I’ll keep my fingers crossed for a change of heart.

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Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Samuel L. Jackson, Jeremy Renner, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Edward Norton, Paul Rudd, Tom Holland, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Mackie, Cobie Smulders, Brie Larson, Chadwick Boseman, Sebastian Stan, Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Pom Klementieff, Josh Brolin, Karen Gillan, Clark Gregg, Paul Bettany, Don Cheadle, Benedict Cumberbatch, Evangeline Lilly, Simu Liu, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Angelina Jolie, Kit Harington, Salma Hayek, Richard Madden, Barry Keoghan, Gemma Chan, Ma Dong-seok, Brian Tyree Henry, Kumail Nanjiani, Lauren Ridloff, Lia McHugh, Jonathan Majors

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Source: Entertainment Tonight