When it comes to book-to-screen adaptations of Andy Weir’s novels, the casting has been genius. First, we saw Matt Damon play Mark Watney in one of the best sci-fi movies, The Martian. Then, we got to see Ryan Gosling as Ryland Grace in Project Hail Mary. Now, attention is turning to his other book, Artemis, and who could play Jasmine “Jazz” Bashara. Well, Weir has pitched Jenna Ortega for the role, and I think she’d be perfect.
While Andy Weir did clarify that he has no say in who gets cast in his adaptations, there’s also no question that his films have been perfectly cast. So, whoever they tapped to play Jazz will likely be a fantastic choice. Hopefully, they take a note from the author himself, because I think he has a good idea, as he told Den of Geek:
That’s a tough call. I mean, it’d be pretty cool—and I have no say in any of this—but if someone like Jenna Ortega would do it. It would be pretty cool. Something like that.
For some background, Artemis is about Jazz, a woman who was born in Saudi Arabia in the 2070s, but was raised on the Moon. She lives in the first and only colony on the moon, and she’s a smuggler who “sees the chance to commit the perfect crime” as the book’s synopsis explains. Through this, Jazz finds herself involved in a conspiracy to control Artemis.
Article continues belowJenna Ortega leading a story about a conspiracy on the moon sounds amazing. I’d love to see her play a smuggler in this sci-fi tale.
I also think it’d be fun to see her take on something that’s based on Weir’s work. His writing is distinct, and both the movies for The Martian and Project Hail Mary maintain his signature sense of humor. While the actress is known for her Wednesday stare and dry sense of humor, the body-swap episode of that show (which you can stream with a Netflix subscription) proved that she has comedic range. So, I’d love to see her show that off more in another project. I feel like Artemis could be that vehicle for her.
Now, notably, in the book, Jazz is half-Saudi. However, in the audio version of Weir’s novel, Rosario Dawson narrated it. So, it’s unclear how faithful casting for the movie would be to the novel.
Going back to the author’s idea for the role, his breakdown of his protagonists convinces me even further that I’d like to see Ortega play Jazz. Speaking about how his characters in The Martian, Project Hail Mary and Artemis compare, Weir said:
They’re all different. Like you can almost not call Mark a hero. He just is a guy who didn’t want to die. He didn’t save anyone… and Jasmine chose heroism kind of toward the end to undo a problem that she herself had created. And then Ryland is actually going out there and trying to save the entire human race, but would rather not be doing it. So they each have their own little way of backing into heroism.
I love the idea of seeing Ortega play someone who is morally complex like this. She's proven over and over again that she's very capable of it, too. So, this sounds like something she’d brilliantly dive into.
However, what we want to happen and what will happen are two different things. Weir said that work on Artemis is “on the back burner,” and he explained that we shouldn’t hold our breath for it. However, he also said Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who directed the well-reviewed Project Hail Mary, have some “really good ideas” for this other adaptation. So, never say never.
Along with an Artemis adaptation staying at a prolonged standstill, Jenna Ortega is busy. Season 3 of Wednesday is in production right now, and she’s in J.J. Abrams new movie, The Great Beyond, which is expected to premiere on the 2026 movie schedule.
So, I guess we’ll just have to hope and see what happens. In the meantime, you can catch the latest adaptation of an Andy Weir novel, Project Hail Mary, in theaters now.
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