From lush black bangs to ghostly pallor: Tim Burton's Wednesday Addams is the NEW Goth Queen of the screen

'As a child I liked to do autopsies on small dead animals and insects; I was weird like that,' says Jenna Ortega in an interview
Jenna Ortega starring as Wednesday Addams in the new Netflix series, 'Wednesday' (Jenna Ortega/Instagram and Netflix)
Jenna Ortega starring as Wednesday Addams in the new Netflix series, 'Wednesday' (Jenna Ortega/Instagram and Netflix)

The iconic Addams Family is back although it does not have Anjelica Huston as Morticia Addams. Although, Netflix does have someone for the younger generation. Jenna Ortega plays Wednesday Addams in the Netflix series, 'Wednesday.' In the early 2000s, we had 'The Craft', and 'The Crow', but we have not had a young, female gothic character who leads a show for almost two decades. Previously, Ortega was seen in 'You' playing the role of Ellie Alves, who is one of the main characters from the second season, nonetheless, she is back on Netflix again but for a much darker role. From her lush, black bangs to her ghostly pallor, Jenna Ortega’s Wednesday Addams is a teen goth queen. 

However, during a recent interview, Ortega confessed how she was weird as a kid and liked to do autopsies on dead small animals and insects. It seems like she was always meant to play Wednesday Addams, as the reel character is quite similar to this. 'The Addams Family' alumni Nina Ricci (who played Wednesday Addams back in the 90s) is also in the new Netflix series but in a different role obviously.

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During a recent video interview with WIRED, 'Wednesday' star Jenna Ortega answers the web's most searched questions about herself. "Is Jenna Ortega related to Gina Rodriguez?" "Is Jenna a Libra?" and "Is she friends with Maddie Ziegler?" when she was describing how they both were different kinds of weird which made them instantly click. She said, "I’m a weirdo… I used to perform autopsies on little animals when I was younger. Like, little lizards that I found that were dead in my backyard. I was weird like that.” She continues further, "She is a weirdo like she breaks out in movements or characters out of nowhere, or makes faces; Her comedic timing is underappreciated. We are weird together."



 

However, the official synopsis of the series reads, "A teenage girl Wednesday Addams discovers mysteries in town and about her parents while learning to control her psychic powers at Nevermore Academy, the boarding school for outcasts she is sent to after getting expelled from her public high school."

The series which is created by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, stars Jenna Ortega as the titular character, with Catherine Zeta-Jones, Luis Guzmán, Isaac Ordonez, and Gwendoline Christie appearing in supporting roles. Four out of the eight episodes are directed by the legendary Tim Burton, who also serves as executive producer.

The series premiered on Netflix on Wednesday, November 23, 2022.

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