Jenna Ortega Watched Her Wisdom Teeth Be Taken Out: ‘I’m Weird’
Jenna Ortega is rapidly becoming the scream queen of her generation. From flawlessly portraying the titular role in Wednesday to starring in scary movies like Scream, Scream 6, and X, it’s clear that the 20-year-old has an affinity for horror movies. But Ortega seems to appreciate things that others might categorize as gory even when she’s not working. The actor seems to be fascinated by a lot of weird things. A good example of this is when she watched with intrigue as she got her wisdom teeth removed.
Jenna Ortega chose to watch her wisdom teeth get taken out
As far as oral surgeries go, getting one’s wisdom teeth removed isn’t too unusual. However, what is uncommon is staying fully awake and coherent through the experience. Most patients either take anesthesia to go under during the surgery or take the sedative nitrous oxide (laughing gas) so that they can relax. However, Ortega opted for neither.
“So I did get my wisdom teeth taken out when I was 17, and I didn’t want to go under,” Ortega explained in an interview with Women’s Health. “I stayed awake. They just numbed my mouth, pretty much, and it was crazy because where I was laying there with like a mirror right above me. So I could see what was happening in my mouth. I just put my headphones on. I watched it because I’m weird.”
The ‘Wednesday’ actor recalled the faux pas she made during her oral surgery
It seems that Ortega appreciated the opportunity to watch her wisdom teeth be removed. However, The Fallout alum did recall one moment when things got all too interesting. For a moment, she underestimated just how much numbing medicine she should use.
“I remember there’s one part too when the orthodontist was on my last tooth, and he was like, ‘Do you think you need more numbing medicine?’ I was like, ‘No, I’m good,'” she recalled. “He’s like, ‘Alright,’ and he cracked the tooth. And I looked at him, and he looked at me, and we were like, ‘Yeah, maybe we’ll put some more of that numbing stuff.’ But after that, it was fine.”
Ortega talks about one of the weird things she did as a kid
Clearly, Ortega isn’t easily phased by gore, blood, or even pain. Perhaps it’s because she performed mock surgeries of her own as a child. While doing the WIRED Autocomplete Interview, the You alum revealed that she wasn’t afraid to get a closer look at the insides of animals when she was growing up. “I used to perform autopsies on little animals when I was younger,” she shared. “Little lizards that I found that were dead in my backyard.”
It seems that it takes a lot to gross Ortega out. Instead, she seems all but fascinated by anatomy, be it human or animal. Considering Ortega’s mom is an ER nurse, she’s probably heard quite a few gory stories. In fact, Ortega has shared that if she ever quits acting she’ll consider nursing as a profession. Clearly, she’s got the stomach for it.
