Is Jenna Ortega in You season 5? Explained

You season 5 premiered on Netflix on April 24, 2025, as the psychological thriller series finally comes to an end with this season. The show followed the story of Penn Badgley's Joe Goldberg, a bookstore manager from New York, who is anything but innocent.

Joe, a serial killer, tried to leave behind his horrifying past and start over several times in his life. However, the fact that he also left behind a trail of dead bodies in his wake certainly did not help his situation in You season 5. In this season, his past catches up to him and finally puts an end to his shenanigans.

Several characters from the past seasons made cameos in You season 5, but one character that was notably missing from that roster was Ellie Alves, portrayed by Wednesday star Jenna Ortega in You season 2. While the character has been briefly mentioned in seasons 3 and 4, she does not appear in You season 5 or any other season apart from the second one.

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Why did Jenna Ortega's Ellie Alves not appear in You season 5?

During an interview with Business Insider dated April 24, 2025, You season 5 co-showrunners, Michael Foley and Justin W. Lo, revealed that Ortega did not return as Ellie due to scheduling issues. While You was being shot in New York City, Wednesday season 2 was being filmed in Ireland. Foley said:

"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."

Speaking of the storyline involving Ellie, Michael Foley revealed that she would have been instrumental in Joe's downfall this season. He explained:

"That was a thought that I'm sure when we were putting things together, we felt like maybe we could make this work, and we just simply couldn't."

Another character that the showrunners wanted to bring back was John Stamos' Dr. Nicky, who is mentioned in season 5 but does not physically appear. Dr. Nicky was imprisoned after being falsely accused of murdering Joe's season 1 love interest, Guinevere Beck. In an interview with TVLine dated April 24, Foley said:

"There was some talk about getting him back. It was just a question of how he sort of fit into the story. There was consideration of it, yes."

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What happened to Ellie Alves in You season 2?

When Joe moved from New York to Los Angeles to start over and escape his past in You season 2, Carmela Zumbado's Delilah Alves leased a flat to him. Delilah was an investigative journalist who lived with her teenage sister, Ellie Alves (portrayed by Jenna Ortega), in the same apartment complex as Joe.

Joe became a close acquaintance of Ellie and was protective of her. Then, after Love Quinn murdered Delilah, Ellie moved to Florida with the money Joe gave her so that she could start over. In season 3, Joe kept sending money to Ellie, who did not physically appear in the show, while he started a family with Love in the Californian suburb of Madre Linda.

Showrunner Sera Gamble had told IndieWire in early February 2023 that they wanted to bring back Ellie in You season 4, but were unable to do so because Ortega was busy shooting Wednesday season 1.

When asked about it in an interview with Entertainment Tonight in late February 2023, the Scream VI actress revealed that she was "devastated" by the fact that she could not rejoin You for the fourth season.

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You season 5 is available to stream on Netflix.