It’s now common knowledge that Jenna Ortega filmed Wednesday‘s now-iconic dance scene whilst having COVID-19. But now, some fans are taking issue with the scene even being allowed to happen.
The film industry, as with most industries, has been blighted by COVID-19 as productions were shut down for long periods of time at the height of the pandemic. When they were allowed to recommence they did so with strict guidelines, including testing for everyone on set on a regular basis, as well as COVID-19 safety officers on set. While these were in place, Ortega was allowed to continue filming despite feeling sick rather than holding off and waiting for confirmation.
Speaking to NME, Ortega was discussing the dance scene and revealed, “it’s crazy because it was my first day with COVID so it was awful to film.” She went on to elaborate on exactly how ill she was when she woke up that day.
“Yeah, I woke up and – it’s weird, I never get sick and when I do it’s not very bad – I had the body aches. I felt like I’d been hit by a car and that a little goblin had been let loose in my throat and was scratching the walls of my esophagus. They were giving me medicine between takes because we were waiting on the positive result.”
This was later confirmed by the production via an email that read, “strict COVID protocols were followed, and once the positive test was confirmed production removed Jenna from the set.”
Despite this email, many are wondering that if she was sick and displaying signs of COVID-19 before shooting, why was she even allowed on set in the first place?
Someone claiming to have some film health and safety experience chimed in citing that this may have been a “HUGE violation of protocol.”
According to Ortega’s interview, she took the test because she felt unwell, meaning she probably shouldn’t have been on set at all.
Others pointed out the costs that come with delaying filming i.e. profit over safety.
This user puts it down the “grind culture” and how toxic it can be when we don’t prioritize our own health.
Important to note, however, that many wanted to remind people that Ortega likely had no say in whether or not she kept working despite her symptoms.
If this is true, and Ortega was showing symptoms before filming this scene, then it was potentially a very risky move on behalf of production, especially considering how many people were on that set at the time.
We Got This Covered has reached out to Netflix for comment.