Wednesday viewers praise Jenna Ortega's "iconic" performance as Addams Family series hits Netflix

Jenna Ortega as Wednesday
(Image credit: Netflix)

Wednesday has finally landed on Netflix and subscribers can't seem to get enough of Jenna Ortega's take on the titular Addams Family favorite. Fans have taken to social media to praise the twist-filled horror comedy's lead, claiming her performance is "a serve" and "iconic." 

Also starring Gwendoline Christie, Luiz Guzmán, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Christina Ricci, who played Wednesday Addams in the 1991 film and its 1993 sequel, the show sees its misanthropic protagonist sent to Nevermore, a famed academy for gifted and "unusual" youngsters, which her mother Morticia and father Gomez once called home. There, she stumbles across a mystery, and soon finds herself attempting to sniff out the true identity of a monster that's been offing folks all over town. Think Enola Holmes meets Chilling Adventures of Sabrina...

Four out of its eight episodes were directed by Tim Burton, who also serves as executive producer alongside creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar. The rest were helmed by Gandja Monteiro and James Marshall, respectively.

"Halfway through the first episode of Wednesday on Netflix, it's gonna be a hit. Jenna Ortega is absolutely nailing the role. Sort of a dark hysterical Harry Potter," said one Twitter user.

"[Jenna Ortega] is a masterful actress, thoroughly enjoying her take on Wednesday," tweeted another. "OH JENNA ORTEGA IS EATING THIS SHIT UP," shouted a similarly enthusiastic watcher.

"I just finished watching the first episode of Wednesday and God I love it [so much]. Jenna is so perfect as Wednesday and the fencing scenes are so good aaaaaaah," another gushed, while a fifth added: "One episode into Wednesday and it's entirely enjoyable. Jenna Ortega and Catherine [Zeta-Jones] are perfect, lol."

Check out some more reactions below...

While viewers seem to be loving Wednesday, critics weren't quite so enamored. The show currently has a 68% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with some reviews calling it "creepy", "charming", and "witty", and others branding it "uneven", "underwhelming", and "generic".

"We don't know about you, but the very last thing we want to see Wednesday Addams become is an emotionally enlightened do-gooder; we come to this character for po-faced one-liners and casual sadism," argues AV Club's Jenna Scherer.

Wednesday is streaming now. If you're keen to see what else the streamer has to offer, take a look at our guide to the best Netflix shows

Amy West

I am an Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering all things TV and film across our Total Film and SFX sections. Elsewhere, my words have been published by the likes of Digital Spy, SciFiNow, PinkNews, FANDOM, Radio Times, and Total Film magazine.

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