You Season 5 Creators on Why Jenna Ortega Doesn’t Return

With many fans wondering about the reason behind Jenna Ortega‘s absence in You Season 5, showrunners Michael Foley and Justin W. Lo have come out to explain why her character was missing from the show’s final installment. Ortega joined the cast of You in its second season as Ellie Alves, an up-and-coming filmmaker in her teens who becomes the neighbor of Penn Badgley’s Joe Goldberg.

After Alves’ elder sister, Delilah, played by Carmela Zumbado, is murdered in the series, Joe decides to send Ellie to Los Angeles for her protection. While this development promptly ended Jenna Ortega’s time on You, the creators wanted her to return for Season 5. However, as per Foley and Lo’s latest comments, scheduling conflicts restricted them from bringing back Ellie.

Jenna Ortega isn’t in You Season 5 because of Wednesday Season 2

In a recent discussion, Michael Foley and Justin W. Lo noted that Jenna Ortega’s commitment to Wednesday Season 2 forced them to drop their plans to write her character into You’s final season. The duo also shed light on how Ellie’s arc would’ve progressed in Season 5 if not for Jenna Ortega’s involvement in Wednesday.

While speaking with Business Insider, Foley explained why Ortega did not return for You Season 5. “That was complicated by the fact that she’s doing Wednesday in Ireland and it just seemed like a non-starter. We just couldn’t figure out a way to make it work,” the seasoned TV producer stated.

Foley then remarked that if they were able to include the 22-year-old actress in You Season 5, Jenna Ortega’s Ellie would’ve served as a benefactor to Dominique and Phoenix. Lo also opened up on how Ellie and Joe’s trajectories could have panned out in Season 5, noting, “You could make an argument for pro-Joe because he was there for her during a very difficult time in her life. But you could also say, I think Ellie’s very smart and she probably knows that he had something to do with her sister’s death, even though it was Love. So she could have turned against him as well.”

You Season 5 premiered on Netflix on April 24 with 10 episodes. Meanwhile, the Jenna Ortega-led Wednesday Season 2 will come out later this year in two parts. Part 1 of the season will hit Netflix on August 6, with Part 2 premiering on September 3.