The past few months have seen Jenna Ortega become one of the breakout stars on the hit Netflix show Wednesday. As she moves on to other projects in the meantime, Ortega has given a hint at what the next season of the show might look like.
The first season of the show followed Wednesday of The Addams Family and her attempts to make her way through her years at Nevermore Academy while finding herself wrapped up in a mystery surrounding her family. Though the first season boasted traces of the macabre nature of the original Addams Family, Ortega hinted that things might get darker in the next season.
Speaking with Elle Fanning for Variety, Ortega discussed leaning into the horrific aspects of the show, explaining, “It’s still coming together, but we’ve decided we want to lean into the horror more. We’re ditching any romantic love interest, which is really great. We’re going to get bolder, more dark”.
Ortega also discussed her experience on the show helping her find her voice in her field, continuing, “Wednesday forced me out of my shell. Being a young woman in the industry, sometimes people don’t take you as seriously. The most beautiful experiences that I’ve had on a job have always been the ones where everyone’s voice is heard”.
Along with playing the lead role, Ortega will also be working as one of the producers next season as well. When talking about the prospect of taking on production, she had also discussed having conversations with the writers about where to go, saying, “I tried to have as many conversations as possible with the writers. We’d decide what works and what doesn’t. In preparation for a second season, we wanted to make sure that we could start the conversations earlier”.
Ortega’s penchant for horror has already translated to the big screen, working in films such as last year’s X and joining the Scream franchise. She has also been in talks to join the cast of the long-awaited sequel to the ’80s classic Beetlejuice.
When looking towards the future with Wednesday, Ortega wanted to get her vision as accurate as possible, admitting, “With a character like Wednesday, who is so beloved, I didn’t want to get her wrong. I’m just so curious: I want to see the outfits, new characters, scripts”.
