The Family is Coming Together: Netflix’s Addams Family Series Has Found Its Wednesday, Morticia and Gomez
They’re creepy, kooky, mysterious and spooky, and we finally have faces to go with some of the familiar names of Netflix’s take on The Addams Family.
Monday, Netflix announced that Catherine Zeta-Jones will appear in a guest-starring role as the iconic Addams family matriarch in the series, titled Wednesday. She joins previously announced cast members Jenna Ortega and Luis Guzmán. Ortega will star as title character Wednesday while Guzman will play the suave patriarch Gomez Addams.
Wednesday received an eight-episode order at Netflix in February. It is described as a “supernaturally-infused mystery charting Wednesday Addams’ years as a student at Nevermore Academy,” which makes it sound a lot like the streamer’s darker take on Archie Comics’ Sabrina the Teenage Witch, called The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.
In the show, Wednesday will try 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.
Zeta-Jones is the latest actress to offer a live-action rendition of Morticia. Carolyn Jones first essayed the character in the 1960s Addams Family TV series, where John Astin played her paramour Gomez. Anjelica Huston played her in the two Addams Family films in the 1990s, opposite Raul Julia. Most recently, Charlize Theron voiced Morticia and Oscar Isaac was Gomez in the 2019 Addams Family animated film.
Wednesday Addams has been portrayed by Lisa Loring, Christina Ricci, and Chloë Grace Moretz, among others. Yet to be cast are the characters of Wednesday’s brother Pugsley Addams, Uncle Fester, Grandmama, Lurch and Cousin Itt.
The Addams Family first came to life as a series of cartoons drawn by Charles Addams for The New Yorker.
Zeta-Jones’ most recent projects include Feud: Bette and Joan for FX, Queen America for Facebook Watch, and Prodigal Son at Fox. She won an Academy Award for best supporting actress for her role in the hit musical feature Chicago in 2003. Other notable film roles include The Mask of Zorro, Entrapment, and Ocean’s 12.
Guzmán is known for his roles in films like Traffic, Carlito’s Way, and The Taking of Pelham 123. He is a favorite of director Paul Thomas Anderson, appearing in Boogie Nights, Punch Drunk Love, and Magnolia. He recently starred in the CBS medical drama Code Black and has appeared on shows like Oz, Shameless, and Narcos among many others.
Ortega portrayed Ellie Alves, Joe’s next-door neighbor, in season two of You. Other credits include Yes Day, Jane the Virgin, and The Babysitter: Killer Queen.
Al Gough and Miles Millar (Smallville) created Wednesday and will serve as showrunners and executive producers. Tim Burton is on board to direct and executive produce. Other executive producers are Steve Stark, Andrew Mittman for 1.21, Kevin Miserocchi of the Tee and Charles Addams Foundation, Kayla Alpert, Jonathan Glickman for Glickmania, and Gail Berman. MGM Television will produce.