WARNING! This article contains major SPOILERS for Wednesday season 1!Christina Ricci’s most iconic quote as Wednesday Addams in 1990s Wednesday Addams actress Christina Ricci to return to the franchise in a novel role. Ricci was cast in Wednesday season 1 as Marilyn Thornhill, a normie teacher at Nevermore Academy and Wednesday’s dorm mother, who took a notable interest in the title character.
The greatest part about Ricci’s return to The Addams Family world was that she was ultimately revealed to be playing Wednesday’s main villain, thus pinning the new Wednesday against the previous Wednesday. In Wednesday’s season 1 ending, the title character realizes that the caring Marilyn Thornhill is actually the nefarious Laurel Gates, who secretly returned to Jericho to carry out her family’s mission to eradicate all outcasts. While Ricci’s role as Wednesday season 1’s serial killer should have been expected based on the actor’s talent for playing sadistic characters, the twist also pleasantly fulfilled one of her greatest lines from 1991’s The Addams Family movie.
Thornhill Fulfills Christina Ricci’s “Homicidal Maniac” Addams Family Line
Christina Ricci has plenty of iconic one-liners in The Addams Family movies, but the most memorable occurs when Wednesday is asked what costume she’s wearing for Halloween. Donning her normal black dress with a white collar, Ricci's Wednesday confirms that she is wearing a costume: “I’m a homicidal maniac. They look just like everyone else.” This would prove to be entirely true for Ms. Thornhill in Wednesday, who is overlooked as the sadistic serial killer because of how “normal” she appears. While most figures were looking toward the supernatural or bizarre for the killer, the real homicidal maniac turned out to be hidden in plain sight as Nevermore’s quirky normie teacher.
Not only did Wednesday carry out The Addams Family character’s assessment that homicidal maniacs look “normal,” but the payoff is even better considering it was Ricci’s character who was said homicidal maniac. In the world of The Addams Family, Ricci has now gone from beloved, sadistically-minded Wednesday to the character’s biggest foe, which is a great way to the torch from Ricci to Ortega. Ortega’s Wednesday being triumphant in their battle at the supernatural Nevermore Academy was a meta-representation of the younger actor now taking over the responsibility of being the face of the iconic character in pop culture.
Will Christina Ricci Return For Wednesday Season 2?
Although Wednesday season 2 has yet to be officially renewed, the prospect of another installment is high based on the series’ record-breaking success on Netflix. It seems the majority of Wednesday season 1’s cast would return, except those whose characters died, like Gwendoline Christie’s Principal Larissa Weems. While Christina Ricci’s character Laurel Gates was defeated by Wednesday Addams, the series left her fate ambiguous. If Gates is still alive in Wednesday season 2, Ricci’s character will likely return behind bars after the murders she committed around Jericho.
Wednesday’s season 1 finale leaves off by suggesting that Laurel Gates’ story isn’t truly over, as Ortega’s character believes Laurel and Tyler were pawns in a far more wicked game. Since several of the adult characters in Wednesday season 1 were killed off, there aren’t very many that can return for season 2, so Ricci reprising her role as Laurel would be a major advantage for the show’s cast. While she likely wouldn’t play an integral role in Wednesday season 2’s story, Christina Ricci can be expected to at least make a cameo if her character is alive.