‘Wednesday’: A Breakdown of the Cast and Their Characters in the Netflix Series
Jenna Ortega leads Tim Burton’s first small-screen project for Netflix, Wednesday. The November series will slightly flip the script on the famous macabre family and its goth teenager. While including the bizarre Addams family, the series will focus on an older Wednesday Addams as she attends Nevermore Academy. Ortega is joined by cast members Katherine Zeta-Jones, Luis Guzman, and Christina Ricci for Wednesday.
Christina Ricci plays the mother hen of Wednesday’s dorm
Since the live-action movie, The Addams Family, and the sequel, Christina Ricci is known as the epitome of Wednesday. She played a slighter older version than what fans were used to but made the character a pop culture icon. When the Netflix series was announced, fans wondered if Ricci would return.
Fans got their wish as Ricci was announced to join the cast of Wednesday after another actor’s exit. Her character role was kept a secret as she was happy to return to the Addams universe, which was a big part of her life. In the official trailer for the series, fans got their first look at Ricci as Marilyn Thornhill. The character is a mystery for now as she is the den mother and seems far too kind and sweet.
Gwendoline Christie joins the cast of ‘Wednesday’ as Larissa Weems
From playing Lucifer in The Sandman, Gwendoline Christie will play the role of Larissa Weems in Wednesday. A character description is still unknown, but based on the trailer, Weems is the headmaster of Nevermore Academy. With her pointed smile and gaze, she appears to be someone who runs a tight ship. It is unclear if the character has hidden secrets.
The cast of Wednesday also includes Knives Out actor Riki Lindhome as Dr. Valerie Kinbott. The character has not been revealed in the official teasers and trailers. But fans can speculate Dr. Kinkbott is Nevermore’s in-house nurse or doctor.
Katherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzmán star as the Addams’ matriarch and patriarch
While Wednesday focuses on the macabre teen, it would not be complete without Morticia and Gomez Addams. Raul Julia became the most famous rendition of Gomez alongside actor Anjelica Huston as the sharp cheekboned and cinched waisted Morticia. But for the Tim Burton series, Katherin Zeta-Jones takes on the role of the matriarch with the same chilling sexual appeal and long black hair.
But for Gomez, cast member Luis Guzmán portrays a more cartoon-accurate version for Wednesday. From the trailers, fans see that the characters are very much in love and think highly of their daughter. They send her to Nevermore, the school where they met and fell in love. But the synopsis for the series explains they were involved in a mystery 25 years ago that Wednesday begins to investigate. Fans even see Morticia cut roses while staring at a tombstone.
Fred Armisen joins the cast as the eccentric Uncle Fester in ‘Wednesday’
The cast of Wednesday was almost complete, but fans wanted to see Fester Addams. At NYCC, Fred Armisen joined the cast onstage to reveal his role as Uncle Fester. In the main trailer, Wednesday feels someone following her in the woods and attacks. To her surprise, her attack is thwarted, and she gets zapped. It is none other than her Uncle Fester, bald and all.
Armisen takes over the role made popular by Back to the Future actor Christopher Lloyd. Like his predecessor, Armisen committed and shaved his head to get the right look. So far, fans are convinced by his version of Fester from the long coat, sunken eyes, and rambunctious attitude. But fans have to see what Fester knows about the mysterious murders and her parent’s past.
Jenna Ortega gets the stamp of approval from Christina Ricci as Wednesday
When portraying Wednesday Addams, stepping into Ricci’s shoes is not an easy task. The You and Scream actor plays a teenage version of the character in her solo storyline. Unlike past versions, Netflix’s Wednesday has the macabre teen develop powers, attend school, solve murders, and have Latina origins.
The trailer reveals Wednesday gets expelled after saving her younger brother from bullies. She is sent to Nevermore, where her parents went to school for gifted children. While sticking out like a sore thumb, she gets intrigued by the school’s secret societies, mysteries, and local murders. Ortega has revealed that the role has been stressful, and she sometimes lost her way. But she got the stamp of approval from Ricci and Burton.
Rounding out the cast is Isaac Ordonez, who joins the cast of Wednesday as Pugsley. Fans have only seen the character twice, but it is unclear how significant his involvement is in the series.
Wednesday will air on Netflix on Nov. 23.
