BILLIE PIPER AND JOANNA LUMLEY ARE JOINING THE CAST OF ‘WEDNESDAY’ S2
Warning: This article contains Wednesday season one spoilers.
Wednesday officially 'won' December 2022 for us (sorry, Father Christmas), thanks to the character’s goth-inspired looks, scene-stealing dance choreography and deadpan humour. So, is it any surprise fans of the hit Netflix show have been left wanting more?
Following Christina Ricci’s ground-breaking portrayal of the Addams Family’s eldest child, Wednesday, in the 1990s film franchise, actor Jenna Ortega has taken the raven-haired, pigtail-wearing character to a new level for a modern-day audience on Netflix, from serving Givenchy and Rick Owens-inspired monochrome glamour, to Agatha Christie-style detective skills on the teen's quest to find out who is killing Jericho’s residents.
Following the first season’s plot twist in its finale, fans have been left guessing who that text was from and whether there will be a season two of the show.
Here’s everything you need to know about Wednesday season 2:
Firstly, has Wednesday season 2 been confirmed?
Wednesday has indeed been confirmed for season two. The news was officially confirmed by Netflix's official Twitter on January 6, 2023.
'We can’t wait to dive headfirst into another season and explore the kooky, spooky world of Nevermore,' co-show-runners Miles Millar and Alfred Gough told Tudum.
The series' main character, Ortega also confirmed the news by sharing Netflix's Tweet, and adding: 'Thanks to everyone who made this upcoming season possible. This has all been pretty surreal'
Earlier this year, the Netflix Twitter account had tweeted the final scene in Wednesday season one, which sees Ortega's character typing 'The End?' on her typewriter. The streaming platform's account captioned the post: '???????'
In an interview with Screen Rant, the series’ co-creator Alfred Gough discussed the possibility of expanding the Wednesday universe. ‘Miles (Millar, his fellow creator) and I are talking amongst ourselves about it. There's definitely more that you can explore in the world of the Addamses,’ he said.
‘It’s encouraging and exciting to see how much engagement there is,’ Netflix's Head of US & Canada scripted series Peter Friedlander told Variety. 'How much people want to not only come to Netflix, but to finish these shows and then talk about them.'
Referring to the success of Ortega's dance to Lady Gaga's 'Bloody Mary', which has taken TikTok by storm, he added: 'Engagement. That’s what we’re pouring all of our efforts into.
‘It’s not just the dance, it’s people dressing up and buying make-up and wanting to look like Wednesday Addams. The resurgence, for me, it’s something that’s been in the culture for a long time — but never this pronounced. It’s something that we want to study and understand why this is such a phenomenon.’
Meanwhile, Friedlander kept his cards closer to his chest, noting: ‘I have nothing to confirm at this time. I am optimistic about Wednesday. We’ll leave it at that.’
Who will star in Wednesday season 2?
We can’t imagine Wednesday without Ortega, or her right-hand (pardon the pun) man, Thing, played by Victor Dorobant. Luckily for us, they're both confirmed to return alongside Emma Myers as Enid Sinclair, Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia Addams, Luis Guzmán as Gomaz Addams, Hunter Doohan as Tyler and Joy Sunday as Bianca Barclay.
In April 2024, Variety revealed that Westworld actor Thandiwe Newton would also be joining the cast of Wednesday season two. Newton will be joined by fellow British actors, Joanna Lumley and Billie Piper, in the second season.
Piper will be taking on the recurring role of Capri, Lumley will play Grandmama, Wednesday and Pugsley's grandmother, and Newton will guest star as Dr. Fairburn.
Christina Ricci, who played Ms Thornhill in Wednesday, is unlikely to return following her failed ‘mission’ in season one, as is Gwendoline Christie's character, Larissa Weems, following her... demise.
However, we're not completely losing hope of a potential Ricci return – particularly following her recent comments at the Yellowjackets season two premiere. Speaking on the red carpet with Entertainment Tonight, the actor hinted at a possible return for Wednesday season two – saying 'on my end, the door is open' if the show wants to bring her back.
When pushed for details, Ricci kept things vague: 'I don't think I'm allowed to say,' she told reporters, before gushing about her role in the first season. 'She was so fun to play!' said Ricci. 'It's always so fun to play a villain.'
In a video shared at Netflix’s Tudum 2023 event on June 18, Ortega, Doohan, Myers, teased that a new member of the Addams Family will be joining as part of season two, which sent the rumour mill into overdrive.
While Doohan added they ‘don’t know who’ will be joining them, Ortega suggested Cousin Itt while Doohan and Sunday agreed that Grandmama could be a good choice.
Other theories included the possibility of Principal Weems actually being alive (and disguising herself as Lurch), whether one of the characters acquired Crackstone's ring and inherited the villain's powers, and the chance that Wednesday is now in control of the Hyde's powers.
What will the Wednesday season two plot be?
We imagine the second season will follow on from the nail-biting end in the first season, which saw Wednesday learn that her 'boyfriend' Tyler was the monster who was being controlled by ‘normie’ Ms Thornhill.
Speaking to Digital Spy, Doohan suggested we might not have seen the end of his character, Tyler.
‘I do think he escaped at the end,’ he said of the season one finale. ‘When I read that on the page, I was so excited. I was like: “Come on, don't be dead, don't be dead”.
‘I think he was being controlled by Miss Thornhill,’ he continued. ‘Then he had to go manipulate Wednesday to carry out their plan and I think he did a pretty good job with it.'
Speaking recently on The Tonight Show, Ortega also opened up about what she'd like to see happen in season two. 'We just started getting a writers' room together and talking about it,' she said. 'I think we want to up the horror aspects a little bit and get Wednesday out of the romantic situation and just let her be her own individual and fight her own crime.'
During her Variety Actors on Actors segment in June 2023, she provided an update on the season two plot. 'It’s still coming together, but we’ve decided we want to lean into the horror more. We’re ditching any romantic love interest, which is really great. We’re going to get bolder, more dark,' she explained.
The Wednesday star also told Dax Shepard on his Armchair Expert podcast what she hopes doesn't get repeated in season two. 'I don't think I've ever had to put my foot down on a set in the way that I had to on Wednesday because it's so easy to fall into that category, especially with this type of show,' explained Ortega. 'Everything that she does, everything that I had to play, did not make sense for her character at all. Her being in a love triangle made no sense.'
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