A new clip from Tim Burton's Wednesday has been released as part of Netflix's TUDUM Festival. The clip highlights Wednesday's (Jenna Ortega) relationship with her parents, or at least her attitude and feelings towards them, and her relationship with Thing, the Addams family’s disembodied hand servant.
The Wednesday release date was announced to be on November 23, a Wednesday, naturally. The Netflix series will explore Wednesday's time at Nevermore Academy, where she must uncover the mysteries of the school, which have plagued the place since the time of her parents’ attendance. In the meantime, Wednesday must figure out how to fit in with her peers, whom she does not want to be around.
The clip features Wednesday discovering Thing in her dorm room. Unimpressed, Wednesday subdues him and demands to know whether he was spent to spy on her by Morticia (Catherine Zeta-Jones) and Gomez (Luis Guzman), who Wednesday describes as “evil puppeteers who want to pull [her] strings, even from afar.” When Thing refuses to talk and insists her parents are looking out for her, Wednesday threatens him until he agrees to help and kneel in submission for her. The clip ends as Wednesday begins to plot her escape from Nevermore Academy with Thing.
Interestingly, the clip also features Wednesday listening to a Spanish song, a nod to earlier talk of Ortega's take on Wednesday Addams, where it was stated that Wednesday's Latina heritage would be a part of the series. Though it’s a short clip, it’s also illuminating. The idea of Wednesday viewing her parents as “evil” fits right in with The Addams Family, who usually revere all sorts of dark arts and magic.
It could also be that Wednesday is simply being dramatic, as teenagers usually are. On the other hand, given that the show focuses on Wednesday, and that the series also focuses on the teenage experience, a time when adolescents chafe at their parents' protection and actions, is it possible that Gomez and Morticia will take on a more antagonistic role this time around?
Wednesday's willingness to violence is also interesting. Though it’s nothing new, previous adaptations leave the Addams family's proclivity for violence in the background, usually only implied and for comedic purposes. Here, Wednesday's desire to break Thing's fingers until he complies with her is a more violent scene than would be expected in other adaptations. It will be interesting to see how far the series leans into the themes of violence and murder.
Wednesday premieres on November 23, 2022, on Netflix.
Source: Netflix/YouTube