Jenna Ortega has joined the ranks of actors playing the classic role of Wednesday Addams, starring in the Netflix series Wednesday. We knew we were in for a treat early on after seeing the snappy preview of Ortega gave us a glimpse of the sinister death-obsessed teen. However, did you notice that she hardly ever blinks in the role? Well, there’s a story about how that impressive trait came to be on the show.
Wednesday Addams is known for hardly showing any emotion and speaking her mind with no care about the reaction. Another outstanding quality of hers is going through an entire scene while rarely blinking. Netflix Tweeted that the origin of this was director Tim Burton being impressed by Ortega keeping those glaring eyes of hers open for one take. So, naturally, the filmmaker decided to have the former Disney Channel star keep it up the entire run of the show. You can see for yourself in the video below of when Wednesday meets barista Tyler (Hunter Doohan).
After trying one take where she didn’t blink, Tim Burton was so enamored with the result he told Jenna Ortega not to blink anymore when playing Wednesday. So she didn’t. pic.twitter.com/h5Ver9oozCNovember 28, 2022
How her eyes weren’t red and watery in all of these scenes I’ll never understand. It’s for reasons like this that Jenna Ortega was nominated for the 2023 Golden Globes. We still see the sadistic nature of this dark teenager shine through that constant stare as per tradition – but this is also a new interpretation of the character.
One way that we see a stark change in the character is that Wednesday exhibits superpowers – specifically she has visions of events that have happened to other people through touch. Her Latin representation is also seen throughout the show as her family celebrates Dia de Los Muertos, and she is in one scene featured listening to a Mexican folk song in her dorm. It’s nice we’re able to see the Wednesday Addams we’ve loved for decades with something new to the table for today’s generation.
While Jenna Ortega took on big shoes playing this creepy, kooky role, with Christina Ricci among her celebrated predecessors – so just imagine having to share the screen with her. Ortega has said she was “terrified” to have Ricci join the show and see her with those braids and the black-and-white attire. When you think about the preparation Ortega went through to make this role her own, hardly blinking in scenes was probably the least of her worries.
The work that Jenna Ortega put into her title role clearly paid off. While Wednesday has received mixed reviews, one thing the critics agree on is the 20-year-old star’s performance. They love how she was able to make the character her own. Fans have also offered some A+ reactions, expressing their positive opinions of the Netflix series after the season one finale.
Jenna Ortega’s lack of blinking on Wednesday is further evidence of what a stellar actress she is, bringing a new trait into her character to make her all the more frightening and memorable. See if you can catch any blinks watching the series with your Netflix subscription.
