Wednesday season 2 adopting a darker tone means that the Netflix show is more likely to avoid season 1’s most common comparison. Wednesday season 1 took the titular Addams Family character to a boarding school for outcasts and thrust her into the middle of a murder mystery, through which she discovered her destiny to defeat an ancient evil pilgrim and his bigoted bloodline. Wednesday season 1’s ending left several loose ends untied, such as the identity of Wednesday’s stalker a certain beast unleashed, i.e. Tyler’s Hyde.
All of this and more will be addressed in Wednesday season 2, which is set to be released sometime in 2025. Ortega has revealed many intriguing details about Wednesday season 2 so far, including the fact that Wednesday is “definitely leaning into more horror“. Wednesday season 1 had certain horror aspects, such as the imagery of the Hyde, but season 2 is “going to get bolder, more dark” (via Variety). With a more explicit and intentional focus on horror, Wednesday season 2 is less likely to encounter as many comparisons to another fantasy-based franchise as season 1.
Wednesday Cast & Character Guide
Jenna Ortega leads Netflix’s Wednesday, but she’s backed by a strong supporting cast playing Addams Family characters, like Wednesday’s mom Morticia.
Wednesday Season 2’s Horror Influence Will Destroy Those Harry Potter Comparisons
Wednesday season 2 will be scarier than the Harry Potter movies
When Wednesday season 1 was released, the series often got compared to the Harry Potter movies. The Harry Potter movies were always more whimsical, whereas Wednesday had more of a gothic vibe and aesthetic, which was fitting as an Addams Family spinoff. Still, Wednesday and Harry Potter both dealt in the fantasy genre and explored supernatural phenomena. Wednesday also bore similarities to Harry Potter‘s worldbuilding, plot elements, and central character’s arc, making the Harry Potter influence on Wednesday hard to ignore.
By leaning more into horror, Wednesday season 2 will stray further from its genre proximity to Harry Potter. That’s not to say that the Harry Potter movies never incorporated elements of horror, but even though the Harry Potter movies could be scary at times, they were always more rooted in the action-adventure and fantasy genres. Wednesday season 2 centering the spookiness even more will set it apart from Harry Potter and avoid as many comparisons to the famous wizard and his magical cinematic universe.
How Wednesday Season 1 Was Like Harry Potter
The Netflix series is reminiscent of the famous film franchise in many ways
They may not be identical, but Wednesday season 1 is similar to the Harry Potter movies in many ways. For instance, the titular protagonists are both gifted beings who begin exhibiting uncontrollable, inexplicable supernatural powers. Both Harry and Wednesday are then sent to a boarding school for kids with special abilities (Nevermore and Hogwarts) of which their parents are notable alumni, and quickly find themselves at the center of dangerous and mysterious circumstances far beyond their years.
As a result of a prophecy, both Wednesday and Harry are “destined” to save their kind from a bigoted leader (Joseph Crackstone and Lord Voldemort) whose mission is to wipe out a marginalized population (outcasts in Wednesday and half-bloods and Muggle-born wizards in Harry Potter). This villain was initially defeated by a witch related to the protagonist (Wednesday’s ancestor Goody and Harry’s mother Lily) but is later resurrected/reborn using the protagonist’s blood as the final step in the process. Both Wednesday and Harry engage in a final battle with their respective antagonists on school grounds and come out victorious.
Harry and Wednesday also both have a unique dynamic with their school’s principal or headmaster (although Wednesday’s relationship with Weems is not quite as amicable as Harry and Dumbledore’s) who hides information from them for their own protection. The protagonists later witness their school leaders get killed by a teacher who turns out to be a villain (or, in Snape’s case, pretended to be). Weems is also similar to Snape due to her history with Wednesday’s parents and resentment of Morticia Addams.
In Wednesday, normies are to outcasts what Muggles are to witches and wizards in Harry Potter. Although Wednesday‘s Jericho and its townspeople are a lot more central to the plot, Outreach Day in particular is reminiscent of Hogwarts students’ outings to Hogsmeade. When it comes to school events, Wednesday is most similar to Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. The Poe Cup race is just like the swimming challenge in the Triwizard Tournament (including the merpeople’s interference), and the Rave’N is just Wednesday‘s less formal version of the Yule Ball.
Their likeness is made the most explicit with one particular line from Wednesday that takes the Harry Potter influence to a new level. In episode 6, Weems asks Wednesday, “How do you manage to end up at the center of every terrible thing that happens around here?” which sounds just like McGonagall asking the trio, “Why is it, when something happens, it is always you three?” in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. With all of these examples and more, the Harry Potter undertones running all throughout Wednesday season 1 are undeniable.
Wednesday Season 2’s New Supernatural Characters Can Make The Show Darker
Wednesday season 2 will expand on the series’ supernatural world with brand new characters
In addition to amping up the horror elements, Wednesday season 2 is also “expanding on the supernatural world” established in season 1. This means that Wednesday season 2 will feature new supernatural characters, who could either be part of the existing outcast species at Nevermore in Wednesday or perhaps even usher in some new, unfamiliar species to the Netflix show’s universe. Either way, introducing new supernatural characters can actually help to make Wednesday even darker in season 2.
While Wednesday season 1 introduced plenty of different types of supernatural beings, the series only delved into the history and lore of a few species. One of these was Hydes, which are the most scary-looking and dangerous creatures in the Netflix show so far. There’s still plenty left to discover about Hydes and even more to learn about other species like werewolves and sirens in the Wednesday universe. Expanding on the supernatural world creates an opportunity to uncover dark secrets and truths about different outcast species like Hydes throughout history, which will set a darker tone in Wednesday season 2.
Wednesday
- Cast
- Jenna Ortega , Catherine Zeta-Jones , Luis Guzman , Gwendoline Christie , Riki Lindhome , Jamie McShane , Christina Ricci , Hunter Doohan , Emma Myers , Joy Sunday
- Release Date
- November 16, 2022
- Seasons
- 1
- Streaming Service(s)
- Netflix
