Christina Ricci is back in the Addams Family franchise via the new Tim Burton-directed Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) series “Wednesday,” although not as the creepy and kooky clan’s morose daughter.
What Happened: Ricci played Wednesday Addams in the 1991 Barry Sonnenfeld-directed “The Addams Family” and its 1993 sequel “Addams Family Values.” The 42-year-old Ricci is not cast as an older version of Wednesday, but is instead playing a new character created for the series — 19-year-old Jenna Ortega has been cast in the Wednesday role.
According to a Deadline report, “Wednesday” is being positioned as a combination coming-of-age comedy mixed with supernatural elements and mystery sleuthing, anchored in the title character’s years as a student at Nevermore Academy. Ricci is reportedly replacing Thora Birch, who exited the Romanian-based production after shooting began.
MGM is producing “Wednesday,” which includes Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia Addams and Luis Guzmán as Gomez Addams.
How It Happened: Cartoonist Charles Addams created “The Addams Family” as a series of stand-alone one-panel cartoons about a bizarre family for The New Yorker in 1938. The family members did not have names until Addams’ cartoons were adapted into a 1964 television series, with six-year-old Lisa Loring cast as Wednesday.
In “The Addams Family” television series, Wednesday was mostly a supporting character who raised spiders and favored a Marie Antoinette doll (without a head, naturally), but otherwise behaved as a sweet-natured (if somewhat somber) little girl. For the 1991 film, Ricci’s Wednesday was presented as a darker personality with a penchant for violence.
Ricci’s performance appeared to be more favored than Loring’s, as fans of the actress petitioned Netflix to include her in the new series. In addition to “Wednesday,” Ricci will be returning to the second season of the Showtime series “Yellowjackets.” Showtime is owned by Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA) (NASDAQ:PARAA).
Photo: Christina Ricci in the 1991 “The Addams Family,” courtesy of Paramount Pictures
