Playing a character that audiences are familiar with is a difficult thing to do while trying not to veer too far from the source material or stay too close to someone else’s interpretation. That’s why Wednesday star Jenna Ortega refrained from seeking any advice from her cast mate and predecessor Christina Ricci in regards to playing the eldest daughter of the Addams Family.
Being the first member of the strange and unusual family to star in their own solo project, Wednesday Addams is a fan-favorite character that many have dressed as for Halloween throughout the years, adorning her signature black braids and serious expression. Taking on such an iconic role, Ortega shared that she felt “immense pressure” when playing such a “beloved character” in an MTV News interview with her costar Emma Meyers. The actress, who is the reigning scream queen due to her acclaimed performances in A24’s X as well as the latest Scream film, explained that it was a challenge to balance her own version of Wednesday with nods to previous iterations of the character without completely replicating someone else’s work. Ortega also revealed that she never spoke with Ricci, who is well-known for playing Wednesday as a child in the 1991 film The Addams Family and its 1993 sequel Addams Family Values, about their connection while filming the new Netflix series together.
In Ortega's words:
"I think when [Ricci] was on set, neither one of us said Wednesday once to each other. I don't think she wanted to get in the way of my performance and feel like she was overbearing… I felt like I didn't want to pull up something that she did 30 years ago. For the sake of my own benefit, but two, I didn't want to rip her off and I didn't want to be too much like her."
Although the new Wednesday series and the popular ‘90s films are both based on characters from Charles Addams' original cartoons, Ortega explained that’s about where the similarities end. "Our show has superpowers and outcasts and evil ghost pilgrims," Ortega said, comparing her version of the character to Ricci’s iconic role. "They're two very different people, our Wednesdays."
Directed by filmmaker Tim Burton, Wednesday centers around a teenage version of the character known for using a guillotine to decapitate her dolls as she investigates a string of murders at Nevermore Academy. In the new series, which takes place at the boarding school for outcasts where Wednesday’s parents first met, Ricci plays Nevermore Academy's dorm mom Marilyn Thornhill. In addition to Ricci, Meyers joins the creepy, kooky, and altogether spooky cast as Wednesday’s colorful werewolf roommate, Enid Sinclair. The new series also features performances by Gwendoline Christie, Hunter Doohan, Percy Hynes White, and Rikki Lindhome. The guest stars include Catherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzmán as Wednesday’s equally iconic parents Morticia and Gomez Addams, respectively.
Wednesday is streaming on Netflix now. Watch Ortega and Myers' spoiler-filled conversation about the series below.