Jenna Ortega Responds to Backlash Over 'Miller's Girl' Age Gap: 'It's Not Supposed to Be a Comfortable Movie'

The film, which also stars Martin Freeman, caused an uproar over the age difference between Freeman and Ortega.

August 6, 2024

Jenna Ortega at an event wearing a strapless dress with floral details and a statement necklace, standing in front of a backdrop with text and logos — Gilbert Flores / Variety via Getty Images

Jenna Ortega recently starred in Miller’s Girl opposite Martin Freeman.

The film was immediately divisive, as it follows the story of an affair between a student (Ortega) and a teacher (Freeman), who, in real life, have a significant age difference of 31 years.

Ortega has now addressed the controversy, telling Vanity Fair for its cover story, "It’s not supposed to be a comfortable movie. It’s supposed to be awful at times."

She continued, "Art isn’t always meant to be pleasant or happy, and everyone skips off into the sunset at the end. We all have fucked-up experiences at one point or another."

Back in April, Freeman also addressed the fuss over Miller's Girl, which arrived in January and is now available to stream on Netflix.

In an interview with The Sunday Times, Freeman said that the movie is "grown-up and nuanced." He added, "It’s not saying, 'Isn’t this great?'"

"And that’s a shame," the 52-year-old said, pointing to other films that portray difficult subject matter without endorsing it, like Schindler’s List. "Are we gonna have a go at Liam Neeson for being in a film about the Holocaust?"

Miller’s Girl was written and directed by Jade Halley Bartlett, and produced by Mary-Margaret Kunze and Seth Rogen. The cast also includes Dagmara Domińczyk, Bashir Salahuddin, and Gideon Adlon.