Top 10 Addams Family Easter Eggs in Wednesday

Cartoonist Charles Addams (1912–1988) created the much-loved Addams Family in 1938. The family appeared in a series of one-off, unrelated cartoons. Addams did not name the characters or attempt to give them a backstory. The characters became the people (and things) we now know so well when the 1964 TV series ushered them into our living rooms.

this first the addams family The television show ran for two seasons (1964-1966) and had 64 thirty-minute episodes. Lisa Loring played Wednesday: a cute six-year-old girl whose main hobby is raising spiders. Wednesday stands in contrast to the rest of her family, which is decidedly weird. As time passed, Wednesday’s character changed. In 1991, Christina Ricci played her as a dark-minded preteen. In the 2022 Netflix series, Jenna Ortega’s Wednesday is just as macabre but older. However, she keeps the black pigtails of hers.

the netflix series Wednesday he sees Wednesday kicked out of her school for throwing piranhas into the pool while the water polo team was practicing, but this isn’t simple malice. Wednesday is defending her brother, Pugsley, from bullying. Wednesday is dark and different, but she’s not bad. She is sent to Nevermore Academy, a school with a long connection to the Addams Family. Once there, she has to deal with the staff, students, and locals and solve a murder or two. In many ways, Wednesday is the story of a teenager trying to find her way in the world.

The series was filmed in Romania, the home of Dracula and a country that offers many locations, including Nevermore Academy, that perfectly fit the story. There are several references to the backstory of the Addams Family and other cultural icons. Part of the fun is trying to spot them.

Related: The 10 Best Fun Facts And Easter Eggs From The Mandalorian

10 finger click ok

The original show’s theme song begins with the lines:

“They’re creepy, and they’re flirty. Mysterious and creepy…”

And it features the cast doing a lot of finger clicking. Carolyn Jones, who played Morticia, can barely contain a smile as the camera records her double-click.

in the modern Wednesdaythere is a secret society at Nevermore Academy, and there is a riddle that tells you how to get into its library:

“The opposite of the moon. (Sun).
A world among ours. (Lower).
Two months before June. (April).
A flower that self-sows. (Thought).
One more than one. (Two).
Its leaves cry to the ground. (Willow).
It melts in the sun. (Ice).
Its beginning and end never found. (Circle).
Every rule has one. (Exception).”

If you read the first letter of each answer aloud, the secret instruction appears: click twice. Wednesday snaps his fingers even though he thinks the partnership is a dumb idea. The simple snap is an homage to the 1964 theme song.

9 annoying pilgrims

In the 1993 film Addams Family Values, Christina Ricci’s famous Wednesday hijacks a Thanksgiving play at Camp Chippewa. She causes chaos when she and her friends flip the script and lead a rebellion against the colonists.

In Wednesday, the pilgrims reappear. This time, the Nevermore Academy students have to visit Pilgrims World, a theme park in the nearby town. Wednesday has to hand out candy to visitors and makes it clear that she thinks this “pathetic whitewashing of American history” is, well, a hoax.

Wednesday’s obvious dislike of the Pilgrims stems from the fact that they persecuted his relative, Goody Addams, long ago. This reveals a dark side to the Addams Family. In many ways, she perverts the idea of ​​the American Dream. Usually this takes the form of a mild parody; in the Pilgrims episode, he is much more direct.

8 take a bow

As we can see in this clip, Jenna Ortega’s Wednesday is pretty good at archery. It’s a skill you can see Christina Ricci developing as Wednesday in the 1991 film. the addams family, in which he enjoys shooting arrows at his brother, Pugsley. Pugsley doesn’t quite understand it, in Addams Family Valuesmanages to kill an American bald eagle.

Ortega did not limit himself to practicing archery. In order to play on Wednesday, he also had to learn boxing, fencing, speaking German and playing the cello. Wednesday treats it all with an impressive level of cold competition; Ortega could not do less.

Executive producer (and director of four episodes) Tim Burton demands a lot from his actors, and his team has responded with great performances in modern classics like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Alice in Wonderlandand Edward Scissorhands. Burton enjoys making gothic horror movies, but usually adds a bit of dark humor. Wednesday It must have been a pleasure for him.

7 looking for girls

In Wednesday, Jenna Ortega says she could have a Girl Scout for breakfast. This is a reference to a scene in 1991 the addams family.

In the scene, Wednesday and Pugsley reluctantly manage a lemonade stand filled with steaming potion flasks. A prim Girl Scout approaches and insists that she will only buy a lemonade if it is made with organically grown lemons; she will not eat anything with artificial ingredients. She adds that Wednesday and Pugsley will have to buy a Girl Scout cookie if they want to make a sale.

Wednesday, serious of course, ask if the cookies are made with real Girl Scouts.

6 Ricci’s return

In the clearest act of homage to the past, Alfred Gough and Miles Milar, the creators of Wednesday, he wanted Christina Ricci to be involved in some way. This could have been a bit awkward because Christina had defined the character. Would Jenna Ortega mind her presence on the new show? No, there was none of that. Naturally, interviewers always asked what Ricci thought of Ortega’s Wednesday. She was (and is) full of praise.

It’s fitting that Ricci plays the role of Mrs. Thornhill, one of Wednesday’s teachers at Nevermore Academy. In WednesdayMrs. Thornhill is a “norm” who teaches botanical science and acts as a “bedroom mom”.

Like Wednesday, Ricci is something of a maverick. She has starred in quite a few blockbusters and has been nominated for a Golden Globe and two Emmy Awards, but Ricci prefers to work in independent productions.

5 Woe to Poe!

Charles Addams might have created The Addams Family, but the inspiration behind the ghoulish, gothic atmosphere comes straight from Edgar Allan Poe. Wednesday acknowledges this with the Poe Cup Race.

The race is a no-holds-barred competition between the four different cliques at Nevermore Academy. The vampires row “The Pit and the Pendulum”, the mermaid man “The Gold Beetle”, the werewolves are in “The Black Cat” and the gorgons have “The Cask of Amontillado”. The names come from Poe’s famous stories in various genres, and the costumes and personalities of the teams reflect the stories themselves.

Poe’s short stories are generally not known for their humor, a big difference between Wednesday and Poe’s dark stories.

4 It’s you, isn’t it?

Cousin Itt does not appear in Wednesdaybut he was a much loved character in the original the addams family series. It is only fair that he receives a nomination in the new production. And she does.

Wednesday and Uncle Fester are at the Nightshades’ secret meeting place. On the wall is a portrait of what looks like nothing more than a mop of hair. Fester tells Wednesday that this is a portrait of Ignatius Itt, who had an affair with Wednesday’s aunt Ophelia. He had once been a student at the academy.

3 make your moves

In Wednesday Episode 4, we join the students at the Rave’N school, where Jenna Ortega performs a very novel routine. The actress created the dance herself (which underscores her talent), but was inspired by Lisa Loring’s attempt to teach Lurch to dance on the original series. You can see some similarities between the two routines, but Ortega takes the dance to a different level.

Everyone else at the ball wears white and dances without much enthusiasm, nor with much flair. Wednesday, expressionless as always, is in black. The puzzled partner of his seems lost.

This has turned out to be a favorite scene among fans of the show.

2 In black and white

One clear difference between Wednesday and the other students at Nevermore Academy is her school uniform. All students wear a uniform that reflects the colors of the school. Wednesday, of course, is different. His uniform is the same style as the others but is black and white (naturally, black is Wednesday’s favorite color).

Ajax, a gorgon on Nevermore, sees Wednesday and exclaims, “Wow, you’re in black and white!”

The 1964 series was filmed in black and white.

1 Never more

Nevermore Academy is a real location: filming took place at Cantacuzino Castle in Romania. But does Nevermore remind you of another famous fictional school? hogwarts in Harry Potter, maybe? Nevermore Academy is similar to Hogwarts and is inspired by Harry’s school. There is no attempt to hide this; it’s just a tribute.

Nevermore contains multiple allusions to the Addams Family’s backstory. Cousin Itt’s portrait is one, Morticia’s famous wicker chair is referenced, and Wednesday’s house, Ophelia, is named after Wednesday’s aunt.

The academy has its own website (nevermoreacademy.com) which tells us:

“Founded in 1791, Nevermore Academy is an academic institution that breeds outcasts, freaks, and monsters. Our mission is to help each student master her extraordinary abilities through world-class academics and unique extracurricular activities.”

Edgar Allan Poe, Cousin Itt, and Morticia are listed as distinguished alumni.

If you are in Romania, you can visit the Cantacuzino Castle. Originally built in 1911, it opened its doors to the public in 2010.