Wednesday: Jenna Ortega explains why she initially passed on the Netflix series

Once Jenna Ortega was hard at work playing the title character on Netflix’s Addams Family series Wednesday, she became so dedicated to making sure the title character came off just right that she would even change lines from the way they were written in the scripts. But during an interview with the UK’s Times, she revealed that she initially passed on the chance to star in Wednesday.

Ortega told the Times (as reported by Deadline), “I got the email, passed on it. I had done so much TV in my life, all I’ve ever wanted to do is film. I was scared that by signing on to another television show it could prevent me from doing other jobs I really wanted and cared about.“

It was the involvement of Tim Burton, who executive produced the series and directed four of the first season’s eight episodes, that convinced Ortega to give Wednesday a try. Eventually. “Tim is such a legend, and we just happened to get along very well. But even then I said, ‘Ah, no — I think I’m OK,’ a couple [more] times.” Ortega and Burton got along so well, they might end up working together again on Beetlejuice 2. And Wednesday turned out to be one of the biggest hit shows on Netflix.

Wednesday is described as

a comedic, supernaturally-infused coming-of-age series that follows the teenage girl’s years as a student at Nevermore Academy, where she attempts to master her emerging psychic ability, thwart a monstrous killing spree that has terrorized the town, and solve a mystery that embroiled her parents 25 years ago — all while navigating her new relationships at Nevermore. Snap snap.

Ortega is joined in the cast by Isaac Ordonez as Pugsley and Luis Guzmán and Catherine Zeta-Jones as Gomez and Morticia. Also on the show are Riki Lindhome as Wednesday’s therapist Dr. Valerine Kinbot; Joy Sunday as Siren Nevermore student Bianca Barclay; Emma Myers as Wednesday’s sunny roommate Enid Sinclair; Hunter Doohan as townie Tyler Galpin; Moosa Mostafa as quirky Nevermore student Eugene Otinger; Georgie Farmer as awkward and shy Nevermore student Ajax Petropolus; Naomi J. Ogawa as vampire Nevermore student Yoko Tanaka; Percy Hynes White as supernaturally artistic Nevermore student Xavier Thorpe; Jamie McShane as Sheriff Donovan Galpin, Tyler’s father, who has a vendetta against Gomez; Gwendoline Christie as Larissa Weems, “the principal of Nevermore Academy who still has an axe to grind with her former classmate Morticia Addams”; Victor Dorobantu as Thing, the non-verbal disembodied hand; George Burcea as Lurch; Tommie Earl Jenkins as Mayor Walker; Iman Marson as Lucas Walker; William Houston as Joseph Crackstone; Luyanda Unati Lewis-Nyawo as Deputy Santiago; Oliver Watson as Kent; Calum Ross as Rowan; and Johnna Dias Watson as Divina.

Thora Birch had signed on to play a character named Tamara Novak, “Wednesday’s dorm mother and the only ‘normie’ on staff at Nevermore Academy, with a focus on all things botanical.” Sadly, due to a family illness, Birch had to leave the production in Romania and return to the United States before filming was complete. Christina Ricci, who previously played Wednesday herself in the live-action feature films The Addams Family and The Addams Family Values, replaced Birch, taking on the role of Marilyn Thornhill.

Are you glad Ortega finally decided to sign on to play Wednesday? Share your thoughts on the Netflix series by leaving a comment below.