Only True Tim Burton Fans Would Notice This About Christina Ricci's Character In Wednesday
Warning: Contains general spoilers for "Wednesday"
It's strange to think that a director who has relished in the mysterious and kooky for most of his career hasn't ended up at the door of The Addams Family sooner. Tim Burton, director of "Beetlejuice," "Edward Scissorhands" and "Batman Returns," has made a name for himself by dabbling in darker territories, so being at the head of the new "Wednesday" series is an indication that the stars have finally aligned.
Besides being an executive producer on the new show that branches off from the family we know to focus on the daughter we should fear, Burton himself directs four episodes of "Wednesday" as well. It's a tough job, but Burton was bound to do it eventually, and what we end up with does feel in line with the iconic director's works.
In fact, there's a crucial element to Wednesday's story (brought to life by Jenna Ortega) that feels eerily familiar not simply to one of Burton's back catalog but even more so given the parties involved. A cast member that links to both Burton and the world-famous family he's now finally spending quality time with. That cast member is none other than Christina Ricci. It's just a shame, so many people had to be killed off on-screen to make the connection. However, be warned, dear reader, you should only go further if you've managed to make it through "Wednesday" and uncovered the show's villain and their evil plot. If not, well, heads are bound to roll.
The criminal mind behind Wednesday takes a leaf out of Sleepy Hollow
While it's a real treat to see the star behind the most well-known take on Wednesday — Christina Ricci — appear opposite Jenna Ortega's new iteration, there's a murderous meta layer added to the show, given that the former is trying to wipe this show's version off the calendar. It's eventually revealed in "Wednesday" that Ricci's character, Marilyn Thornhill, is actually the brains behind the brutal killings and that she's using a local monster, a Hyde, to get the job done. What's interesting about this is that it's the very same method applied in "Sleepy Hollow," her first collaboration with Tim Burton in 1999. The difference is that she was on the receiving end of a calculated killer instead of being one herself.
In Burton's take on the classic fable, Miranda Richardson is the story's surprise killer, using a monster of her own to accomplish the cold-blooded schemes that see her chopping down family trees by way of the Headless Horseman (Christopher Walken) chopping off heads. While Ricci's Thornhill doesn't meet as much of a grisly end as Richardson's Lady Mary Van Tassel, her plans are thwarted all the same. It's just another case of history repeating itself and proving that if you're going to be offing people in a Tim Burton whodunit, it really is best to do it yourself.