Wednesday Season 2 Undergoes Some Major Casting Changes

It’s been a long wait for Wednesday season 2. The first season of the live-action Addams Family spinoff arrived the end of 2022. Since then, fans have been eager for updates on the popular series that looks to be the key to Netflix’s post-Stranger Things future.

Thankfully, Netflix has finally provided some information about on season 2 and it’s decidedly more than a morsel. Today, the streamer announced that production on season 2 is officially underway. It did so via a clever video that also just happens to reveal a major casting shakeup. Check it out below:

As the adorable disembodied hand, Thing T. Thing, drops Wednesday season 2 episode 1 scripts (titled “Here We Woe Again” naturally) in front of various actors doors, we get some sneak peeks at who will appear in the new season. Naturally there are familiar names like Bianca (Joy Sunday), Grandmama (Joanna Lumley), Morticia (Catherine Zeta-Jones), Enid (Emma Myers), and the spooky queen herself (Jenna Ortega). But there are also some other big name actors and characters who are new to the series.

Thing introduces us to Steve Buscemi (Fargo, Boardwalk Empire) as Barry Dort, Billie Piper (Doctor Who, I Hate Suzie) as Capri, and Thandiwe Newton (Westworld, Line of Duty) as Dr. Fairburn. While none of these character names have an obvious analog in The Addams Family lore, the actors involved bring some big star power to Wednesday. And they are just three of the 12 new faces joining the show.

Netflix also notes the additions of new series regulars – Evie Templeton (Return to Silent Hill), Owen Painter (The Handmaid’s Tale), and Noah Taylor (Law & Order: Organized Crime) – and many more guest actors: Christopher Lloyd (Addams Family, Back to the Future), Joanna Lumley (Fool Me Once), Frances O’Connor (The Missing), Haley Joel Osment (The Kominsky Method), Heather Matarazzo (The Princess Diaries) and Joonas Suotamo (Star Wars).

The additions are just one part of the casting shakeup, as there have also been three major subtractions as well. Absent from the season 2 announcement are Percy Hynes White as psychic student Xavier Thorpe, Jamie McShane as town sheriff Donovan Galpin, and Naomi J Ogawa as vampire student Yoko Tanaka. Deadline confirmed that the three characters will not be returning as series regulars – though McShane may appear briefly to wrap up his arc.

Of the three departing characters, the only big surprise is Xavier Thorpe, who was one of the series leads and served as a love interest for Wednesday Addams in season 1. When Ortega was added as a producer on Wednesday season 2, she indicated that she was interested in moving the show away from its teen romance angle to focus more on traditional horror. Perhaps that rendered Xavier Thorpe obsolete. Additionally, Hynes White was the subject of sexual assault allegations in early 2023 though the social media posts alleging the assault have since been deleted and Hynes White released a statement denying them.