Whenever the new Netflix original Addams Family spinoff series Wednesday debuts on the streaming giant, it will be bringing a fan-favorite actress along with it. Christina Ricci has officially been added to the cast of the Netflix series, though she's apparently not playing the character that most fans might have expected.
As might be expected, Netflix's Wednesday will center around the precocious young daughter in the Addams Family, and the titular character will be played by Jenna Ortega. The series is being billed as a "coming of age" comedy that is directed by Tim Burton and written by Smallville creators Al Gough and Miles Millar. The show is going to focus on Wednesday Addams' days at Nevermore Academy and will also involve some supernatural-infused sleuthing.
According to Deadline, Christina Ricci - who most recently had a blink-and-miss-it role in The Matrix 4 - has been signed on as a series regular. While the details of who she will play are being kept under wraps, it is believed she will be a brand-new character. Ricci was reportedly brought on board after Thora Birch left the project, and although she is playing a different character, it is similar to and will replace the role previously played by Birch.
Rumors of Ricci joining the cast of Wednesday have been circulating since the show was announced. Most believed there might be a chance that she would make an appearance as an older Wednesday Addams. With Ortega slated to take on a high school version of the character for the Wednesday Addams series, it appears the show isn't going in that direction anymore, if it ever was.
Ricci's portrayal of the young daughter of Morticia and Gomez Addams is so beloved by fans of the "reboot" movies that when Wednesday was first announced, it wasn't just rumors that fueled talk she would return to the role. Fans actually started a petition in order to get Burton to hire the actress to take on the part one more time. It appears Burton was able to mostly make fans of the actress happy without changing his vision for the series too dramatically.
Now that the Yellowjackets star is on board, it appears that Wednesday does indeed have quite the star-studded cast. In addition to Ricci and Ortega, Catherine Zeta-Jones is going to play the matriarch of the family in Morticia and comedic great Luis Guzmán will play her husband, Gomez. As of now, it's not yet known just when the Netflix series is due to debut on the streaming giant.
Wednesday is expected to air sometime later in 2022.
Source: Deadline