Aside from working together on Jane the Virgin, Jenna looks up to Gina because of their similar backgrounds. "I look up to Gina Rodriguez because, like me, she did not have a connection to the business," she told Latina in 2016. "We are both Latinas who do not come from money and did not have an easy way in. She speaks openly about the challenges of being a Latina actress and how Latin actors are not represented on screen the way they should be. She has proven that hard work pays off and I admire that."
Jenna also added that it was "so cool" getting the opportunity to play Gina's younger self in the CW series. "Gina is amazing, so I was honoured to get to play the younger version of her," she added. "My favourite days were the table read days because everyone was there. The writing was is so funny, we would spend some time laughing together because it was too funny not to."