Actor Christina Ricci, who memorably played Wednesday in the ’90s The Addams Family films, will reportedly be returning to the franchise playing an undisclosed role in Netflix’s upcoming Tim Burton-directed Wednesday Addams series, simply titled Wednesday. Variety was the first to report.
This is the first casting news on the series in many months. In August 2021, it was revealed that Catherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzman would be portraying Morticia and Gomez Addams–shortly after the news that Jenna Ortega was stepping in to play the show’s titular role. The only other information about Ricci’s casting is a firm insistence that she will “not be playing an older version of the character.” Deadline is reporting that Ricci was brought on following actor Thora Birch’s exit mid-production.
The young adult series is being described as “a sleuthing, supernaturally-infused mystery charting Wednesday Addams’ years as a student at Nevermore Academy. Wednesday’s attempts to master her emerging psychic ability, thwart a monstrous killing spree that has terrorized the local town, and solve the supernatural mystery that embroiled her parents 25 years ago–all while navigating her new and very tangled relationships at Nevermore.” The series has so far been greenlit for one season, spanning eight episodes.
Burton’s involvement assures this new series will do proud by the franchise’s macabre nature and altogether ookiness–the director is synonymous with films with dark style and an odd sense of humor, such as Beetlejuice and 1989’s Batman, starring Michael Keaton. Co-creators Al Gough and Miles Millar–writing partners who developed and worked together on The CW’s series Smallville–will serve as showrunners.
