Jenna Ortega Had More Than One Veteran Wednesday Addams Helping Her Prep
This article contains mild spoilers for "Wednesday."
Viewers of the "Addams Family" franchise have mixed feelings about the latest installment of the iconic and dour family's adventures (here focused on Wednesday), with some fans accusing Wednesday (Jenna Ortega) of coming off as a 'Mary Sue' due to the high number of skills she possesses. But it's hard to deny that the show fits fairly smoothly into the franchise at large, and even gives a number of nods to previous versions of the Addams clan's adventures.
The series truly pays homage to its origins in a number of ways through a scattering of small details, from the way it employs the sitcom's theme song to a reference to Wednesday and her brother Pugsley's tendency to play with sharp objects in the 1991 film duology. It's a series that's not ashamed of its roots or of gently tweaking where it began. And it turns out the connection between the various branches of the Addams clan lie even deeper than that. While inspired a lot by Christina Ricci, it seems that Jenna Ortega drew inspiration from another person who's played Wednesday besides Ricci (who portrays the enigmatic Marilyn Thornhill in the series) to help make her version of the character pop to life.
Jenna Ortega thanks Lisa Loring for some of her moves
In a retweet of the dance scene from "Woe What a Night" (episode 4 of the series), Jenna Ortega thanked a number of people for influencing her dance style during the episode. Alongside famous choreographers and directors such as Bob Fosse and Lene Lovich resides the name of Lisa Loring, who played Wednesday Addams in the 1964 sitcom version of "The Addams Family." "Helped me out on this one," Ortega said of her cluster of influences.
For those wondering how Loring could have helped Ortega with her fancy footwork, the young actress was occasionally called upon to dance during the two-season wonder sitcom. One scene, in which Wednesday demonstrates "The Droop" for Lurch (Ted Cassidy), gained a minor level of viral fame in the mid-2010s, with the music under the clip being switched by TikTok editors.
Ironically, the clip of Ortega dancing has spawned a Wednesday Addams Dance Challenge on TikTok. A fan has even created a video that contrasts and compares the two actresses' performances, noting how Ortega's work was influenced by Loring's. It goes to show that when you're an Addams, you definitely need to pay homage to your history.