'They didn't really understand': Joy Sunday responds to criticism over racist overtones in 'Wednesday'
'Wednesday' actress Joy Sunday defended her breakout character Bianca after receiving criticism from viewers for the Netflix drama's alleged racist overtones. Millions of 'The Addams Family' fans who watched the brand-new Netflix series have voted Jenna Ortega's portrayal of Wednesday Addams as one of the year's top TV performances. Many eccentric new classmates joined the Scream star at Nevermore Academy, and one of them recently shared their opinion on some unexpected controversy surrounding filmmaker Tim Burton's most recent work.
Despite the fact that Wednesday has grown to be one of Netflix's biggest blockbusters of 2022, some viewers objected to the show's most notable black characters playing villains. Lucas Walker played by Iman Marson, is the leader of a gang of bullies who terrorize Wednesday throughout the book, while Bianca (Joy Sunday), Nevermore's self-declared Queen Bee, is a formidable rival for Wednesday. Furthermore, Pilgrim World, a nearby theme park that downplays historical crimes against Native Americans, is owned by Lucas' father.
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Responding to the criticism, Joy told Express: “I appreciate that dialogue. I appreciate those conversations because I believe that kind of discourse has got me to where I am. “It’s brought Bianca to life and I always think there’s room for improvement for any kind of character, for any kind of people of colour or queer characters. I think people should always have these discussions," she added.
Even while the actress is perfectly aware of where the criticism is coming from, Joy argues that Bianca is much more than just a generic counterpoint to Jenna's Wednesday. “That said, when that was starting to crop up, I felt that people’s reaction was understandable,” she continued. “The knee-jerk reaction to seeing me go up against Wednesday, you have to raise an eyebrow and say, ‘What’s going on here?’ and really examine it.”
Joy argued that given how much Bianca is shown to have grown throughout the season, the original criticisms of the character were somewhat misguided. On the Reign podcast with Josh Smith, she explained: “I think people were more so reacting to the fact that they were seeing a black woman being so confident and sure of herself going up against somebody they’re supposed to root for." She continued, “They’re not really understanding what to do with that. Obviously, you’re seeing Bianca grow throughout the series. If you stay with the character you understand, and honestly that’s emblematic of a lot of things black women can experience in life.”
Even while Joy thinks some of the accusations were unjust, she still wishes that discussions regarding on-screen representation could continue. “At the end of the day I appreciate that people were talking about it,” she added. “And I hope it continues.” She continued, “But regardless, you had to walk with Bianca to understand her, and I hope those people were able to get to that point.”
Tim's work has received similar criticism in the past, however, it's crucial to note that he is listed as the series director and executive producer and did not contribute to the overarching plot. After the smashing success of season one, Jenna, Joy, and the rest of Nevermore are already rumored to be returning for more mysteries in the Addams Family universe shortly.