The Addams Family have been a fixture on screen since the 1960s with several actors who played Wednesday Addams helping the character become an icon. The classic characters are originally based on the 1938 single-panel New Yorker cartoons by Charles Addams, but it wasn’t until the 1964 sitcom that The Addams Family would become pop culture staples. Since the sitcom, The Addams Family has been adapted on numerous occasions for movies and television. However, the most recently entry into the franchise, Tim Burton’s Wednesday, suggests the family’s eccentric daughter is the real star.
Wednesday Addams is the daughter of Gomez and Morticia and has inherited her parents’ fascination with homicide and torture, which she often practices on her younger brother Pugsley. With her deadpan tone and dark wit — particularly in Christina Ricci’s version of the character — Wednesday is often a highlight of The Addams Family movies and TV shows. Since The Addams Family characters have been around for nearly 85 years, seven actors have played Wednesday Addams, each bringing a different element to the character and continuing Wednesday’s unique legacy in pop culture.
Lisa Loring
The Addams Family (1964-1966); Halloween With The New Addams Family (1977)
The first actor to play Wednesday Addams was Lisa Loring in the 1960s macabre sitcom adaptation of The Addams Family. The original show ran from 1964 to 1966 for a total of 64 episodes, with this version of Wednesday being the younger sister of Pugsley rather than the older child. Loring’s Wednesday Addams was seemingly as bizarre as her family, but far more sweet-natured than the character in later adaptations.
This would be the last time Loring would star in an
Addams Family
project alongside the original cast members, with the actress later appearing in
Blood Frenzy
and
Iced
.
Loring’s Wednesday Addams still had a noted interest in the darker aspects of life, as she enjoyed keeping a black widow as a pet and her favorite doll was a headless Marie Antoinette. Following The Addams Family show’s cancellation, actress Lisa Loring reprised her role as an adult Wednesday Addams in the 1977 made-for-TV special Halloween with the New Addams Family. This would be the last time Loring would star in an Addams Family project alongside the original cast members, with the actress later appearing in Blood Frenzy and Iced.
Cindy Henderson
The New Scooby-Doo Movies (1972); The Addams Family (1973)
The next Wednesday Addams Family actress was Cindy Henderson in the 1972 animated series The New Scooby-Doo Movies, where she voiced the character in the episode “Wednesday is Missing.” The New Scooby-Doo Movies featured a lot of crossovers with other fictional characters as well as celebrities of the era. When Hanna-Barbera gave The Addams Family its own animated sitcom in 1973, Henderson reprised her voice role as Wednesday.
The cartoon was also notable for featuring the voice of young Jodie Foster as Pugsley. It also was notable because it took the family out of their regular neighborhood, following in the vein of the Scooby-Doo series it had spun out of. The family traveled across the country in a camper that looked like a miniature version of their mansion, causing mayhem wherever they went. However, The Addams Family’s 1973 series only lasted one season, after which Henderson never reprised her Wednesday Addams voice role.
Christina Ricci
The Addams Family (1991); Addams Family Values (1993)
Perhaps the most iconic actress who played Wednesday Addams is Christina Ricci, who starred in the 1990s movie duology. The Addams Family (1991) was the first major live-action movie adaptation of the characters, with the successful campiness of the film and darker use of the Addams’ macabre interests earning it a sequel. Despite being aimed at families, the movies weren’t afraid to get dark, balancing horror elements with hilarity.
Wednesday, in particular, was made into a more sardonic and dark character.
The 1991 Addams Family movie established Wednesday Addams as a ‘90s pop culture figure and the breakout role for Ricci. When Ricci reprised the role in 1993’s Addams Family Values, it became clear that her flawless portrayal of the iconic character would be difficult to top in the future. Ricci went on to appear in Tim Burton’s Wednesday series, but passed on the Wednesday Addams torch to Jenna Ortega, with Ricci playing Ms. Thornhill instead of Wednesday.
Debi Derryberry
The Addams Family (1992–1993)
After the success of The Addams Family’s 1991 movie, the characters were again adapted for an animated TV series. The show ran for two seasons from 1992-1993, with Debi Derryberry as the next Wednesday Addams Family actress. The Addams Family’s 1992 cartoon series was still fairly comic-accurate in its portrayals of the characters but had slightly new designs, such as Wednesday’s blue dress and Lurch’s skin being blue.
Though the series was developed because of the success of the ’90s movies, it didn’t go as dark as the movies. Instead, it had to fit in with the lineup of other Saturday morning cartoons when it ran. The series didn’t include some of the more adult aspects of Morticia and Gomez’s relationship either.
Derryberry’s last time tackling the character was in the cartoon’s season 2 finale. Following The Addams Family, Derryberry went on to voice the title character in The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius, the Aliens in Toy Story, and various voices in the Despicable Me movie franchise.
Nicole Fugere
Addams Family Reunion (1998); The New Addams Family (1998–1999)
There was yet another attempt to reboot The Addams Family into a live-action TV sitcom from 1998-1999, which aired on YTV in Canada and Fox Family in the U.S. The New Addams Family lasted one season for a total of 65 episodes, with original Gomez actor John Astin joining the series as Grandpapa Addams. The New Addams Family’s Wednesday was played by Nicole Fugere, who played Wednesday Addams in the 1998 made-for-TV film Addams Family Reunion.
While it could have spiritually turned them into a trilogy, much of the satire and black comedy of the 1991 and 1993 films, and without the original movie cast returning,
Addams Family Reunion
was poorly received in almost every aspect but Tim Curry’s performance as Gomez.
Addams Family Reunion could almost be considered a lost 90s Addams Family movie. While it could have spiritually turned them into a trilogy, much of the satire and black comedy of the 1991 and 1993 films, and without the original movie cast returning, Addams Family Reunion was poorly received in almost every aspect but Tim Curry’s performance as Gomez. Fugere only has three acting credits, with the last two of them seeing her play Wednesday Addams.
Chloë Grace Moretz
The Addams Family (2019); The Addams Family 2 (2021)
The first big-budget adaptation of The Addams Family since the 1990s movies was with MGM’s CGI-animated films, which were released in 2019 and 2021. Again taking a more comic-accurate approach to the characters, animated The Addams Family movies’ Wednesday was still deadpan and morbid, but more sweet-natured than the figure in the 1990s duology. That’s been the theme with Wednesday in the animated projects as an effort to make sure they appeal to younger audiences without scaring them.
In these two films, middle school-aged Wednesday Addams Family actress was Chloë Grace Moretz, who is better known for her roles in Kick-Ass, Tim Burton’s Dark Shadows, the 2013 Carrie remake, and The 5th Wave. It’s unlikely Moretz will voice the character again since it’s already been several years since the sequel movie was released and another actor has already played the role in live-action.
Jenna Ortega
Wednesday (2022-)
The next major adaptation of Wednesday Addams is played by Jenna Ortega, who played Wednesday Addams in the 2022 Netflix series Wednesday. Following Wednesday as a high schooler at Nevermore Academy, the dark, socially awkward, torture-fascinated character helps stop a string of local murders while solving a supernatural mystery that impacted her family 25 years ago.
This was the first time that a major production of The Addams Family depicted Wednesday as a teenager, with the gothic and satirical moments certainly being emphasized under the direction of Tim Burton. The series was a hit for Netflix and Wednesday season 2 will see Ortega returning to the lead role. Before playing Wednesday Addams, Jenna Ortega rose to prominence for her roles in Scream (2022), X, You, The Babysitter: Killer Queen, and The Fallout.
Ortega most recently appeared in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice as another character dealing with some dark storylines.
How Wednesday Changed Wednesday Addams
Along with Wednesday being the first time the character was the lead of the story, Wednesday herself went through a lot of changes for the series. First of all, Wednesday was aged up for the Netflix series. In the original Addams Family TV show, Wednesday was a little girl, and other iterations saw the character being middle school age at the very oldest. Wednesday, on the other hand, is set when the character is in high school. Another big change was that the show gave her psychic visions.
In other Addams Family series, the Addams family members are just normal people with an interest in the macabre. Wednesday puts a whole new spin on things by giving her visions. Wednesday also creates a world divided, with supernatural creatures on one side and normal humans on the other. In the Wednesday universe, normal people are very aware of the supernatural creatures at Nevermore Academy, and it’s interesting considering previous Addams Family iterations avoid the supernatural topic altogether.
Wednesday
also focuses more on her relationships with other people than other
Addams Family
shows have.
Wednesday also seeks to further explore Wednesday Addams as a character, giving her particularly creative hobbies such as writing and playing the cello. Wednesday also focuses more on her relationships with other people than other Addams Family shows have, highlighting a rather contentious relationship with Morticia Addams and a softer one with Pugsley.
Jenna Ortega Made History As Wednesday Addams
While Ricci was once the most popular Wednesday Addams actress, Jenna Ortega has definitively broken new ground as the character. Wednesday dominated viewership charts during the first week of its debut on Netflix, clocking an impressive 341.2 million viewing hours and becoming the most-watched English television series. Reports by SambaTV determined that Wednesday beat House of the Dragon‘s most-viewed premiere spot and scored high with demographics that didn’t often indulge in Addams Family fare.
While Wednesday‘s success was unsurprising, Ortega has firmly cemented herself as the new face of the beloved character and earned critical acclaim for her portrayal of the role. She was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series as well as a SAG award and a Golden Globe. In addition, she ended up winning a Critic’s Choice Super Award and an MTV Movie & TV award for the role. There’s no question that Ortega is the new Wednesday Addams for the current generation, bringing more content and critical acclaim to The Addams Family franchise.
How The Actresses Reflect The Evolution Of Wednesday Addams
The actresses who have played Wednesday Addams across multiple decades reflect how she has been changed for different projects, how she has evolved with time, but also how media has evolved. The animated version of the characters also have the chance for wackier stories because there are fewer constraints on what can be done in animation compared to live-action.
The earliest iteration of Wednesday, for example, is the least dark of the bunch. At the time, Lisa Loring was a relatively unknown child actor. She would grow up to appear in darker fare and work as a makeup artist, but at the time, her lack of experience in the industry fit with Wednesday not being as complex of a character as she is in the modern day. Her age means that it makes sense for Wednesday not to be quite as dark or sardonic as she became in future adaptations.
Appearing as the murderous Wednesday was a step in Ricci’s evolution as an actor, not just in Wednesday’s character shifting with time.
Christina Ricci’s version of Wednesday was so iconic because it reflected making the character bolder, even more sarcastic, and certainly much darker, than she had been on the screen in the past. That is very much a reflection of Ricci’s acting ability. In the early ‘90s, she became known for a slew of family movies, playing vastly different characters in all of them. Appearing as the murderous Wednesday was a step in Ricci’s evolution as an actor, not just in Wednesday’s character shifting with time.
Jenna Ortega as the most macabre version of Wednesday, but also the oldest, is certainly a reflection of Oretga’s ability, but also modern storytelling. The focus is on Wednesday Addams in her Netflix series instead of the entire family, because stories focused on tumultuous teenage years have increasingly done well on the streamer. Likewise, Wednesday solving a murder mystery reflects modern audiences’ increasing interest in mysteries and true crime.
Ortega is also the most experienced of the young actors who have played the character up until now, so it makes perfect sense that the modern version of Wednesday Addams would have the meatiest stories and the most complex character motivations for the newest version of The Addams Family.
