Tim Burton is all set to make his TV directorial debut as he mounts a show all about Wednesday Addams of the Addams Family. The show has been in the works for a while, and according to Deadline, Netflix snapped it up and ordered eight episodes written by Smallville creators Al Gough and Miles Millar.
Appropriately named Wednesday, the series will follow Wednesday Addams during her years as a Nevermore Academy student in what Netflix calls a “sleuthing, supernaturally infused mystery.” No casting announcements have been made as of yet, but O.G. fans of the Addams Family may recall Christina Ricci famously playing the role of Wednesday back in the ’90s.
While she obviously won’t play the role again, it would be nice to see her return in some capacity, maybe as an older Wednesday in a flash-forward. Those original movies — which were not directed by Tim Burton even though they seem like they could have been — are one of the most famous and beloved adaptations of The Addams Family characters, which started as a comic strip in the 1930s before making the jump to TV in the ’60s.
This coming-of-age comedy will focus on Wednesday’s journey towards mastering her psychic abilities, which grow stronger by the day, while simultaneously dealing with a killing spree terrorizing her town and figuring out a mystery involving her parents years ago. Toss Tim Burton into the mix and you’ve got yourself a series to look forward to.
Tim Burton’s TV directorial debut
Tim Burton has made lots of spooky sideways classics over the years, including Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas and many more. But he’s never done television before.
The Addams Family seems right up his alley, as he has a taste for the strange and gothic. With his exaggerated, high contrast aesthetic, I’ve no doubt the show will be a feast for the eyes.
A character like Wednesday Addams is the perfect focus for someone like Burton, as her obsession with death and her pale-skinned, dead-behind-the-eyes, long dark braided hair look is one he’s familiar with. For fans of a certain age, he practically invented it. This is totally Burton’s jam and we are here for it.
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