Few of our younger stars have made quite as an impression on the industry asJenna Ortega, whose scream queen status was quickly cemented by performances inScream (2022)andTi West’sXbeforeTim Burton’s Netflix seriesWednesdaybecame a worldwide sensation. Ortega was energized at a young age to act by watching movies that made a lasting impression. However, Ortega’s key inspiration may come as a surprise.
Man on Fire
Jenna Ortega Was Inspired by Dakota Fanning in the Violent Thriller ‘Man on Fire’
The film that Ortega cites as sparking her interest in performing isMan on Fire, directed byTony Scottand starringDenzel WashingtonandDakota Fanning. Inan interview withVanity Fair, Ortega shared that seeingMan on Fireas a young girl was a formative experience. “[Man on Fire] changed the entire course of my existence,” Ortega said of Scott’s thriller. After watching the film, Fanning’s performance led Ortega to big aspirations: a career in acting.
Ortega’s talent and dedication clearly paid off, with featured roles inIron Man 3andInsidious 2following minor TV credits. After a few smaller parts in a variety of projects, Ortega’s career has exploded, with her reuniting with Burton forBeetlejuice Beetlejuicethis year.Man on Firebeing a key part of her story may be a surprise, but the film was noted and praised at the time for Fanning’s impressive ability to hold her own on screen alongside an acting titan like Washington. This makes it clear why Ortega would have been so enraptured by the film.
Denzel Washington Seeks Revenge in ‘Man on Fire’
Man on Fireis one of Scott’s best films,following Washington as John Creasy, a mercenary who is enlisted to act as the bodyguard to Pita, a young girl played by Fanning.Creasy and Pita clash at first, but he begins to warm up to her over the course of the film, until Pita is kidnapped by a ruthless gang that leaves Creasy near death. Creasy embarks on a violent, destructive journey to retrieve the girl who has become a surrogate daughter of sorts.
Scott’s film is a relentless exercise in vengeance. It is as though Creasy is traveling through the depths of Hell itself to rescue Pita, lowering himself to the status of the criminals he kills because it is the only way to save her. Creasy’s disregard for their lives is never played for entertainment. You’re watching a man destroy his soul in an effort to save someone else’s, because only then can he possibly redeem his own.
Dakota Fanning’s Performance in ‘Man on Fire’ Is Impressive
Dakota Fanning is the beating heart at the center ofMan on Fire. Creasy is a depressed, invulnerable shell of himself before the two begin to click, and the scene where they first start to understand each other is whereMan on Firereally jolts to life.Fanning plays off of Washington’s stoicism with a precocious, endearing energythat finally cuts through his cynicism, when she is able to make him smile and even laugh after a while. From this point, Creasy sees that there is still good in the world.
Fanning commands the scenes between them with an impressive level of emotional maturity. At only ten-years-old,Fanning is able to go head-to-head with Washington in scenes that are funny, dramatic, and heart-wrenching. Their dynamic would not work in the hands of a child actor with any less charm or poise. Fanning’s performance is heavily burdened, asshe is the one source of light in an otherwise bleak, uncomfortable world of violence and death. Seeing how well she commands the screen in this stylish, masterful thriller, it is easy to understand why Ortega was so enthralled. Fanning’s work inspired an actress who has come into her own as a genuine star, and there’s no doubt thatOrtega will have a similar effecton the actresses of the next generation.
Man on Fireis available to rent on Prime Video in the U.S.
