Wednesday Addams has always had an affinity for murder and mayhem. She's a dangerously delightless borderline sociopath, who thrives on inflicting torment upon others.
Over the years, Wednesday has gone through several iterations but the defining element of her character has always remained. However, Wednesday almost had a serious overhaul at Netflix after certain executives raised issues with some of her dark humor.
The show has become an instant hit with streaming audiences, boasting an audience score on Rotten Tomatoes of 88% — the highest-ranking adaptation of The Addams Family since the original TV show first premiered back in the '60s.
Wednesday focuses on teenage Wednesday Addams as she begins to hone her budding psychic ability while simultaneously tending to her studies at the prestigious Nevermore Academy. Absolutely zero punches are pulled, as the series is packed with macabre moments, gleefully violent outbursts, as well as its fair share of inappropriate language.
Wednesday Addams has always been known for her deadpan dark humor, the inclusion of which left Netflix executives feeling uneasy. And while series creator, Alfred Gough, maintains that Netflix was nothing but supportive during production, there were moments where they pushed back.
"We still did have executives wanting to cut some lines," co-creator Miles Millar explained to IndieWire. In particular, Netflix took issue with a specific scene involving Wednesday and her new roommate, Enid.
To which Wednesday replies, "I do like stabbing. The social part, not so much." The line itself is so quintessentially Wednesday, yet Netflix strongly encouraged Gough and Millar to rethink its usage and consider how it might come across to the audience.
"That's the whole point of the character," Millar argued. "To lose that or dilute that is a betrayal of the character." Netflix not only took issue with Wednesday's "stabbing" line, but they were also unsure as to whether or not she should even attend a magical academy.
So the question then became, should she attend regular school or magic school? But Millar and Gough once again won out. They argued that if Wednesday were to attend regular school she'd always have to return home to her family — an aspect of the mythos that Wednesday showrunners wanted to distance themselves from. Millar and Gough were quick to point out that there's a reason why the show is called Wednesday, after all.
