For the ceremony in January, the Golden Globes nominations have been made public. The nominations highlight some of the best aspects of recent movies and television shows and provide a forum for debate about 2022’s top entertainment offerings. Even though these conversations are frequently subjective, the awards try to reach a definitive conclusion.
However, because the awards honor television and film separately, it is more difficult to evaluate and rank performances in each media. Even though Jenna Ortega received nominations for her portrayal of Wednesday Addams in the Netflix series Wednesday, there is a case to be made that it wasn’t her best performance of the year. The horror movie X has Ortega’s best performance of the year.
In the slasher movie X, a tiny crew goes to a remote farm in Texas to shoot a pornographic movie. Maxine “Max” Minx, who portrays Mia Goth, Bobby-Lynne Parker, Scott Mescudi, Jackson Hole, Wayne Gilroy, R.J. Nichols, and Lorraine Day, are among the cast members (Jenna Ortega). Because her boyfriend R.J. is the director and camera operator, Lorraine joins the crew to assist with sound recording.
Initially, Lorraine is critical of the film shoot’s subject matter, but after their first day of shooting, she changes her mind and offers to act in the movie. The farm’s owners, Pearl (also portrayed by Mia Goth) and her husband Howard (Stephen Ure), are shown to be savage killers that evening as they engage in combat with the film crew.
What’s Great About Jenna Ortega’s Performance on Wednesday
It’s important to note how well Ortega does in the role of Wednesday Addams. She deserves to be nominated for a Golden Globe. Wednesday follows the title character as she begins a new academic journey at Nevermore Academy, a specialized boarding school for hideous outcasts and her parent’s alma mater. In an attempt to investigate the enigmatic and horrifying killings afflicting the neighborhood, Wednesday uses her psychic talents to unravel mysteries about her classmates and parents. Ortega manages to give Wednesday dimension without losing his characteristically cold demeanor.
Given the significance of the part’s past, Ortega’s portrayal had to be nothing less than extraordinary. The beloved figure was played in the 1990s by Christina Ricci, whose outstanding performance overshadowed everything Ortega had to accomplish. Not only did Ortega accept the task, but she also managed to give the character a distinctive and new depth while still honoring the key characteristics that Ricci had honed into perfection. The fact that Ortega’s performance on Wednesday wasn’t overshadowed by her adored predecessor is what I found most stunning.
Why Jenna Ortega Delivered a Better Performance in X Than on Wednesday
It might be challenging to directly compare an actor’s performance in a film with a television series. One reason television has an advantage over film is the longer runtime, which allows for more opportunities to showcase various talents and more space for actors to differentiate themselves from one another as well as from other actors. A feature film may find it more challenging to execute many branching narratives. Still, television allows for a much wider diversity, allowing opportunities to exhibit breadth and depth. It is where one may argue that Ortega’s portrayal of Lorraine in X is superior to her role as the title character on Wednesday.
Considering the subject matter, Lorraine’s character arc in the movie is surprisingly touching and transforming. She changes from a shy, reclusive person who thinks she is morally superior to her friends to someone prepared to recognize her mistakes, is open to change, and has become more outgoing. In difficult circumstances, Ortega can communicate this transition’s profundity. Because she is not the protagonist or even the second lead in this movie, she must compete with the other characters with more prominent roles.
