Before Wednesday season 1 even hit Netlfix, there was a lot of anticipation and excitement for the project. Not only was the show based on The Addams Family, an iconic franchise that fans knew and loved, but it was also directed by Tim Burton and happened to star one of the most talented young actresses in the industry.
From the moment Jenna Ortega was cast in the title role of the show, fans knew the show would be something special. That excitement quickly built in the months leading up to release. After dropping in November, Wednesday quickly became one of the streamer’s most-watched programs of all time.
Fans absolutely love the show and cannot say enough positive things about the first season. But star Jenna Ortega? Well, she had some issues.
Jenna Ortega was not a fan of Wednesday’s creative decisions
Jenna Ortega is no stranger to the industry, having gotten started in acting at a very young age. She delivered an absolutely incredible performance as Wednesday Addams. Although as she explained on Dax Shapard’s Armchair Expert podcast, sometimes that was in spite of the scripts she received, which she didn’t think wrote the character correctly.
“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,” Ortega said. “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. There was a line about this dress that she has to wear for a school dance and she says, ‘Oh my god, I love it! I can’t believe I said that. I literally hate myself.’ And I had to go, ‘No, there’s no way.'”
"There were times on that set where I even became unprofessional in a sense where I just started changing lines. The script supervisor thought I was going with something and then I would have to sit down with the writers and they’d be like, ‘Wait, what happened to the scene?’ And I would have to go through and explain why I couldn’t do certain things. I grew very, very protective of her.I can’t watch my work, but I can go home from set and say, ‘The scene that we shot today felt good.’ On Wednesday, there was not a scene in that show that I went home and [said], ‘OK, that should be fine.’"
Given how much Ortega contributed to the show’s first season, we can only hope that she negotiated a producer credit for season 2, which will allow her to have a larger say in the direction the character goes next season.
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